Iplliii 


lliiili, 

11  i  ■ 


1; 


THE 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK, 


1856-7. 


WITH  A  NEW  AND  ACCURATE  MAP. 


BY 

NATHAN  H.  PARKER, 

AUTHOR  OP  "iOWA  AS  IT  IS,"  li  SECTIONAL  AND  GEOLOGICAL  MAP  OP  IOWA," 
"IOWA  HANDBOOK,"  ETC. 


BOSTON: 
JOHN  P.  JEWETT  AND  COMPANY. 

CLEVELAND,  OHIO  :   H.  P.  B.  JEWETT. 
NEW  YORK:  SHELDON,  BLAKEMAN  AND  COMPANY. 
MDCCC  LVII. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1866,  by 
NATHAN  H.  PARKER, 
In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  for  the  District  ol  Iowa. 


LIYHOTYPED  BY  THE  AMERICAN  STEREOTYPE  COMPANY, 
PHOENIX  BUILDING,  BOSTON. 

ANDOVER; 
l'lilNTVD  BY  W.T.  DRAPER. 


tm&mm 
usrary 


PREFACE. 


The  author  of  the  following  pages,  from  extensive 
acquaintance  both  East  and  West,  perceiving  a  great  want 
of  reliable  information  on  the  Territory  of  Minnesota  and 
her  resources,  has,  by  extended  tours  through  various  por- 
tions of  the  Territory,  by  careful  observation  and  frequent 
inquiry,  placed  himself  in  possession  of  information 
which  enables  him  to  present  in  this  work  a  true  exposi- 
tion of  the  resources,  the  climate,  the  soil,  the  condition  of 
cities,  towns,  and  villages,  and  the  actual  settlement  and 
present  condition  of  this  growing  Territory,  which,  though 
organized  but  six  years  ago,  now  possesses  the  requisite 
population  to  enable  her  to  knock  at  the  door  of  the  Union 
for  admission  as  a  State ! 

To  place  this  information  within  the  reach  of  all  who 
may  be  directing  their  attention  to  this  Territory,  he  has 
decided  to  condense  this  information  into  as  brief  space  as 
possible,  thus  giving  it  to  the  public  in  the  form  of  this 
Handbook,  to  be  revised  from  year  to  year,  intending  as 
soon  as  practicable  to  place  before  the  public  a  larger  and 
more  extensive  work  on  Minnesota. 

To  the  capitalist,  seeking  a  field  for  investment ;  to  the 
traveler,  seeking  those  scenes  of  beauty  that  lie  spread  out 
with  that  lavishness  that  nature  seldom  exhibits  ;  to  the 
immigrant,  seeking  a  home  among  these  fertile  vales  and 

(in) 


IV 


PREFACE. 


pebbly  streams,  this  little  book  is  respectfully  dedicated. 
That  prosperity  and  success  may  attend  them,  through  the 
development  of  the  resources  of  this  great  Territory,  is  the 
sincere  desire  of  the  author. 

Nathan  H.  Parker. 

September  1,  1856. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

The  Upper  Mississippi. — Its  Scenery  described. — The 
Prairies  of  Minnesota.  —  The  Aborigines  of  the  North- 
west. —  Geographical  Limits  of  Minnesota, 


CHAPTER  II. 

Upper  Mississippi  Cities,  Towns,  and  Villages.  —  Browns- 
ville, La  Crosse,  La  Crescent,  Winona,  Minneiska, 
Wabashaw,  Reed's  Landing,  Lake  Pepin,  The  Maiden's 
Rock,  Lake  City,  Central  Point,  Wacouta,  Red  Wing, 
Point  Prescott,  Point  Douglas,  Hastings,  Vermillion 
Falls,  

CHAPTER  III. 

St.  Paul.  —  Its  early  history,  magical  growth,  present 
condition,  and  prospective  future.  —  Its  Business  sta- 
tistics. —  Minnesota  Historical  Society,  . 

CHAPTER  IV. 

The  Sight-Seer's  Diurnal  Drive.  —  A  glimpse  at  St.  An- 
thony City,  St.  Anthony,  the  Palls,  Hennepin  Island, 
Minneapolis,  Lake  Harriet,  Lake  Calhoun,  Minnehaha 
Falls,  Fort  Snelling,  Fountain  Cave,  and  St.  Paul,  — 
all  in  one  day's  time,  


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  V. 

The  Minnesota  Valley.  —  Description  of  the  character  of 
the  country  and  of  its  early  settlement.  — 'Fort  Snell- 
ing.  —  Its  history,  33 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Towns  and  Villages  in  the  Minnesota  Valley.  —  Shakopee, 
Pt.  Pleasant,  Bellefontaine,  Jordan,  Belle  Plaine,  York- 
ville,  Chaska,  Carver,  Louisville,  San  Francisco,  Hen- 
derson, Clarksville,  Le  Sueur,  Lexington,  Scotch  Lake, 
Waterville,  Lake  Elysian,  Ottowa,  Traverse-de-Sioux, 
St.  Peters,  Kasota,  30 


CHAPTER  VIL 

The  Great  South  Bend  and  the  Blue  Earth  country.  — 
Mankato.  —  South  Bend  City. — Their  future  pros- 
pects, .43 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

The  Minnesota  River  above  South  Bend.  —  Eureka.  — 
Fort  Ridgley.  —  English  travellers'  opinions  of  the 
Valley,   .47 


CHAPTER  IX. 

The  Falls  of  St.  Anthony.  — Their  discovery  by  Henne- 
pin in  1680.  —  Description  of  the  Falls.  —  Geolog- 
ical theory  respecting  their  original  location.  —  The 
Falls  of  Minnehaha,  54 


CHAPTER  X. 


The  Falls  Cities.  —  St.  Anthony  and  Minneapolis  de- 
scribed, and  Business  statistics  given,    .       .       .       .  60 


CONTENTS. 


vii 


CHAPTER  XL 

The  Mississippi  River  above  the  Falls.  —  Description  of 
the  country.  —  Manomin,  Anoka,  Benton  City,  Saint 
Cloud,  Sauk  Rapids.  —  The  Pacific  Railroad  Crossing, 
Watab,  the  Tamarisk  Swamp,  Little  Falls,  Belle  Prairie, 
Fort  Ripley,  Crow  Wing.  —  The  Indian  Trader.  — 
Definition  of  the  name  "  Mississippi,"    .       .       .  .65 


CHAPTER  XII. 

The  St.  Croix  River  and  surrounding  country. — Point 
Douglas,  Afton,  Hudson,  Lakeland,  Areola,  Marine 
Mills,  Taylor's  Falls,  Amidon,  and  Sunrise,  .       .  73 

CHAPTER  XIII. 

The  interior  of  Minnesota,  watered  by  the  tributaries  of 
the  Mississippi  and  the  Minnesota,  and  by  numerous 
lakes. — The  towns  of  Faribault,  Farmington,  Lake- 
ville,  Poplar  Grove,  Waterford,  Mendota,  Rose  Mount, 
Pilot  Knob,  Rochester,  Cannon  Falls,  Oronoco,  Pleas- 
ant Grove,  Carimona,  Hamilton,  Caledonia,  Hokah, 
Houston  City,  Odessa,  and  Elliota.  —  The  soil  of 
southern  Minnesota,      .......  80 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

South  Bend  and  the  country  north.  — The  towns  of  New 
Ulm,  Glencoe,  Hutchinson,  Cedar  City,  Camden,  Rapid 
Water,  Fremont,  High  Island,  Grimshaw,  Greenwood, 
Forest  City,  and  Excelsior.  —  The  country  between  the 
Upper  Mississippi  and  the  Upper  Minnesota,         .       .  89 

CLIAPTER  XV. 
A  Life  in  the  West.  —  Eastern  errors  corrected.  — West- 


viii 


CONTENTS. 


ern  men.  —  How  Western  Cities  are  made.  —  Growth 
of  the  West.  —  No  "  Overwrought  Representations  " 
of  the  West,   .98 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

Immigration  to  the  Northwest.  —  What  has  caused  this 

great  commotion  ?  —  Extracts  from  the  Press,  .  105 

CHAPTER  XVII. 

Public  Lands  in  Minnesota. — Sales  thereof  in  1855.— 

Pre-emptions.  —  Lands  subject  to  pre-emption,     .  .112 

CHAPTER  XVXXL 

Boundary  and  description  of  Land  Districts,  and  char- 
acter of  the  settlers.  —  New  Land  District.  —  The 
Pre-emption  law,  118 

CHAPTER  XIX. 
Public  Improvements.  —  Territorial  Roads.  —  Railroads 


to  and  through  Minnesota.  —  The  Lumbering  business,  132 

CHAPTER  XX. 
Churches,  Schools,  and  Universities.  —  Minnesota  Bible 


Society,      .       .       .  13V 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

Indians  of  the  Northwest.  —  Territorial  Officers.  —  News- 
papers in  Minnesota.  —  Table  of  Distances,        .       .  140 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE   UPPER  MISSISSIPPI. 

On  one  of  the  pleasant  mornings  in  early  June, 
I  found  myself  a  passenger  on  the  Northern  Bell, 
Capt.  Preston  Lodwick,  and  clerks  De  Bois  and 
Cooley,  in  command,  with  a  full  trip  of  passengers 
on  board,  bound  for  Minnesota.  This  is  the  season 
when  pleasure-seekers  from  the  crowded  East  or 
the  sunny  South  seek  a  retreat  from  care  and  toil, 
on  the  shaded,  pebbly  shores  of  the  crystal  lakes, 
or  by  the  foaming  torrent  of  the  cataract,  intent 
upon  enjoying  to  the  utmost  the  numerous  advan- 
tages afforded  by  the  northwest  to  those  in  quest 
of  health,  wealth,  or  pleasure. 

At  this  season  of  the  year,  every  thoroughfare 
leading  to  the  West  and  Northwest  is  thronged, 
and  at  times  the  boats  passing  up  the  river  are 
crowded  to  their  utmost  capacity.  The  writer 
was  one  of  five  hundred  who  made  the  trip  to 
Minnesota  early  in  the  spring,  on  one  of  the  Min- 

■  (9) 


10 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


nesota  packets.  State-rooms  were  entirely  out  of 
the  question,  and  bunks  upon  the  floor  or  seats  at 
the  table  were  at  a  premium.  Standing  at  the 
lower  end  of  the  cabin,  and  gazing  upon  the 
hundreds  of  persons  whose  beds  covered  almost 
every  foot  of  the  cabin  floor,  I  intuitively  ex- 
claimed, "  This  is  going  west."  I  mused  upon  the 
various  situations  and  climates  and  nations  these 
people  had  left ;  the  misfortunes  that  had  befallen 
some,  and  the  fortunes  that  had  fallen  toothers, 
alike  impelling  them  to  seek  the  "  land  of  promise 
—  the  great  West,"  each  individual  having  differ- 
ent plans  and  anticipations  for  the  future,  and 
each  seeming  to  delight  in  being  one  of  this  hurly- 
burly,  motley  throng. 

The  conclusion  that  I  came  to,  was,  that  who- 
ever finds  himself  in  possession  of  a  state-room, 
and  in  the  enjoyment  of  all  the  comforts  and  lux- 
uries found  on  board  the  floating  palaces  of  the 
upper  Mississippi,  may  consider  himself  highly 
favored. 

This  is  the  season  when  all  nature  is  gay,  when 
the  hills  and  dells  are  robed  in  their  fullest  foliage ; 
and  nowhere  on  this  continent  can  be  found  scen- 
ery more  grand  and  romantic  and  interesting  than 
upon  the  upper  Mississippi.  The  hills  and  bluffs 
and  slopes,  now  precipitous  and  ragged,  present- 
ing a  castellated  front  of  rock  from  two  to  five 
hundred  feet  high,  almost  overhanging  the  water, 
again  sloping  gracefully  down  to  the  water's  edge' 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


11 


bedecked  here  and  there  with  clusters  of  small  oak 
trees  and  flowers  of  almost  every  variety  and  hue, 
extend  along  the  river  on  either  shore  for  a 
hundred  miles  or  more,  and  are  as  various  as 
extensive.  Many  of  these  bluffs  are  but  the  ter- 
mini or  projecting  promontory  of  a  succession  of 
equally  high  and  beautiful  bluffs,  similar  in  char- 
acter, but  of  every  conceivable  shape  and  size, 
stretching  away  up  the  valleys  of  some  tributary 
stream,  and  from  which,  again,  diverge  other  ranges 
of  bluffs  and  hills,  on  the  banks  of  its  tributaries, 
which  hills  are  smaller  in  size  but  no  less  beautiful. 

The  range  of  bluffs  along  either  shore  of  the 
river  are  from  two  to  four  miles  apart.  The  river 
meanders  along  this  valley,  now  washing  the  base 
of  the  beetling  cliffs  on  the  eastern  shore,  for  miles, 
while  those  on  the  opposite  side  are  seen  towering 
up  high  above  the  woodland.in  the  valley  interven- 
ing ;  again  it  divides  itself  into  numerous  channels, 
forming  thousands  of  beautiful  islands  clad  in  dens 
est  foliage ;  and  yet  again  it  winds  its  way  to  the 
western  shore,  bathing  the  feet  of  the  beautiful 
bluffs  and  sloping  hills,  rounded  with  taste  and  skill 
such  as  no  art  of  man  can  imitate,  and  set  out  with 
trees,  here  and  there,  gracefully  arranged  like  or- 
chards, and  covered  with  grass  and  flowers  to  their 
very  summits. 

On  the  river  below  Dubuque  or  above  St.  Paul, 
or  a  few  miles  east  or  west  from  the  river  at  any 
point,  you  reach  the  beautiful  and  fertile  prairies. 


12 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


The  first  idea  that  will  impress  itself  upon  the 
observer  is,  that  "  these  prairies  have  been  cleared 
by  the  patient  labor  of  another  race  of  men,  remov- 
ing all  the  forests,  and  roots,  and  stumps,  and 
brambles,  and  smoothing  them  down  as  with 
mighty  rollers,  and  sowing  them  with  grass  and 
flowers  ;  a  race  which  then  passed  away,  having 
built  no  houses  of  their  own,  and  made  no  fences, 
and  established  no  landmarks  to  lay  the  foundation 
of  any  future  claim."  The  mounds  which  you 
here  and  there  see,  look,  indeed,  as  if  a  portion  of 
this  unknown  race  had  died,  and  had  been  buried 
there,  and  left  these  as  memorials  of  their  presence. 
Whence  came  this  people,  and  whither  have  they 
departed  ? 

"  Are  they  here  — 
The  dead  of  other  days  %    And  did  the  dust 
Of  these  fair  solitudes  once  stir  with  life, 
And  burn  with  passion  ?    Let  the  mighty  mounds 
That  overlook  the  rivers,  or  that  rise 
In  the  dim  forest,  crowded  with  old  oaks, 
Answer.    A  race  that  long  has  passed  away 
Built  them  !    A  disciplined  and  populous  race 
Heaped,  with  long  toil,  the  earth,  while  yet  the  Greek 
Was  hewing  the  Pentelicus  to  forms 
Of  symmetry,  and  rearing  on  its  rock 
The  glittering  Parthenon.    These  ample  fields 
Nourished  their  harvests  ;  here  their  herds  were  fed, 
When  haply  by  their  stalls  the  bison  low'd 
And  bow'd  his  maned  shoulder  to  the  yoke. 
All  day  this  desert  murmured  with  their  toils, 
Till  twilight  blush'd  and  lovers  walked  and  woo'd 
In  a  forgotten  language,  and  old  tunes, 
From  instruments  of  unremember'd  form, 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


13 


Gave  the  soft  winds  a  voice.    The  red  man  came  — 
The  roaming  hunter  tribes,  warlike  and  fierce, 
And  the  mound-builders  vanished  from  the  earth. 
The  solitude  of  centuries  untold 
Has  settled  where  they  dwelt.    The  prairie  wolf 
Howls  in  their  meadows,  and  his  fresh  dug  clen 
Yawns  by  my  path.    The  gopher  mines  the  ground 
Where  stood  their  swarming  cities.    All  is  gone  — 
All !  save  the  piles  of  earth  that  hold  their  bones, 
The  platforms  where  they  worshipped  unknown  gods/'' 

We  live  not  in  a  neiv  world.  "  Not  a  foot  of 
ground  that  we  tread  but  has  been  trod  before  us." 
Dahkota  and  O  jib  way,  Shianu  and  Ausinabwaun, 
Winnebago  and  loway,  Ozaukie  and  Musquakie, 
have  each,  together  or  in  succession,  dwelt  in  this 
land,  hunted  and  warred  through  it,  migrated  to 
and  from  it ;  and  now  the  Anglo-Saxon  race,  fol- 
lowing the  "  Star  of  Empire"  as  their  "  star  in  the 
West,"  have  taken  possession  of  these  magnifi- 
cently beautiful  and  unsurpassably  fertile  fields. 

But  I  digress  —  my  object  is  not  to  write  the 
past  history,  but  the  present  condition  and  future 
prospects,  of  Minnesota  Territory. 

The  geographical  limits  of  Minnesota,  as  defined 
by  act  of  Congress,  extend  from  the  Mississippi 
and  St.  Croix  Rivers  and  the  western  extremity  of 
Lake  Superior  on  the  east,  to  the  Missouri  and 
White  Earth  Rivers  on  the  west;  and  from  the 
Iowa  line  on  the  south,  to  the  boundary  line 
between  the  United  States  and  the  British  posses- 
sions  on  the  north.  The  Territory  comprises  an 
2 


14 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


area  of  one  hundred  and  sixty-six  thousand  square 
miles,  or  one  hundred  and  six  millions  of  acres; 
lying  between  parallels  43°  30'  and  49°  of  north 
latitude,  and  extending  between  90  and  103°  of  west 
longitude.  The  Territorial  Government  of  Min- 
nesota was  established  by  an  act  of  Congress, 
approved  3rd  of  March,  1849. 


CHAPTER  II. 


UPPER  MISSISSIPPI    TOWNS.  THEIR   CONDITION  AND 

PROSPECTS. 

Brownsville,  the  county-seat  of  Houston 
county,  is  the  first  point  in  the  Territory,  passing 
up  the  Mississippi.  It  is  situated  at  the  mouth  of 
Wild  Cat  Creek,  and  one  hundred  and  fifty-three 
miles  above  Dubuque.  The  United  States  land 
office,  formerly  located  at  this  place,  has  been  re- 
moved to  Chatfield,  some  sixty  miles  distant,  in 
Fillmore  county. 

The  next  point  above  is  La  Crosse,  Wisconsin, 
a  city  of  probably  4000  inhabitants,  and  growing 
very  rapidly.  This  city  is  to  be  the  terminus  of 
two  railroad  lines,  each  of  which  are  being  pushed 
westward  with  energy.  The  earnings  of  sixty-one 
miles  now  completed  of  the  La  Crosse  and  Mil- 
w^aukie  Railroad,  for  June  last,  were  upwards  of 
$50,000.  La  Crosse  is,  and  will  doubtless  con- 
tinue to  be,  the  most  important  river  point  in  Wis- 
consin. 

La  Crescent,  directly  opposite  La  Crosse,  is 
a  town  recently  laid  out,  which  promises  to  be  a 
place  of  much  importance,  and  the  commercial 

(15) 


16 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


emporium  of  Houston  and  adjoining  interior  coun- 
ties. The  town  is  situated  at  the  mouth  of  Hokah 
or  Root  River,  which  stream  takes  its  rise  in 
Mower  and  Olmstead  counties,  some  seventy-five 
miles  distant.  A  company  has  been  organized 
who  are  preparing  for  the  continuation  of  the  La 
Crosse  and  Milwaukie  Railroad,  westward  from 
La  Crescent,  up  the  valley  of  Root  River  to  South 
Bend  on  the  Minnesota  River.  Hon.  Thomas  B. 
Stoddard,  mayor  of  La  Crosse,  is  president  of  this 
company.  This  site  is  in  the  hands  of  J.  T.  Boyle, 
of  Danville,  Ky.,  J.  M.  Bryant,  of  La  Crescent, 
and  others ;  who,  we  understand,  will  this  fall  and 
next  spring  erect  a  large  hotel,  and  such  manufac- 
tories and  buildings  as  this  rapidly  growing  town 
and  the  rich  agricultural  country  in  rear  of  it  may 
demand. 

Winona,  the  county-seat  of  Winona  county,  is 
situated  forty  miles  above  La  Crosse,  and  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  below  St.  Paul.  The  traveller  will 
seldom  find  anywhere  more  grand  and  imposing 
scenery  than  that  surrounding  Winona.  The 
town  is  situated  upon  a  beautiful  level  prairie, 
several  miles  in  extent,  surrounded  by  high  and 
rugged  promontories,  in  places  almost  overhanging 
the  plain  below.  Five  beautiful  valleys  converge 
on  to  this  delightful  plain — the  White  Water, 
Rolling  Stone,  Gilmore,  Burns',  and  Pleasant 
valleys  —  each  bounded  on  either  side  by  a  range 
of  bluffs,  stretching  away  back  into  the  interior, 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


17 


with  hills  and  moles  of  every  conceivable  shape. 
The  country  interior  is  rapidly  filling  up,  and  the 
natural  roads,  leading  out  to  the  numerous  new 
towns  in  rear  of  Winona,  contribute  to  make  it 
an  important  river  town.  This  place  is  but  three 
years  old,  and  the  titles  to  the  land  upon  which  the 
town  stands  were  not  perfected  until  October  last ; 
yet,  with  all  the  obstacles,  it  has  grown  to  contain 
at  present  a  population  of  upwards  of  2500 !  The 
town-site,  with  additions,  contains  eight  hundred 
acres,  divided  into  two  thousand  five  hundred  lots, 
which  are  selling  at  prices  varying  from  $100  to 
$4000.  The  U.  S.  land  office,  a  three-story 
banking  and  land  agency  house,  a  steam  saw- 
mill, and  a  large,  first-class  hotel,  are  among  the 
principal  public  buildings  recently  erected.  A 
court-house  and  jail,  of  stone,  to  cost  $10,000,  and 
two  additional  saw-mills,  are  under  contract. 

Winneiska,  eighteen  miles  above  Winona,  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Whitewater  River,  is  a  new  town, 
with  much  thrift  and  energy,  and  the  landing  for  a 
large  section  of  country. 

Wabashaw,  twenty-five  miles  farther  up,  is  a 
thrifty  young  town. 

Reid's  Landing,  five  miles  above,  and  two  miles 
below  the  foot  of  Lake  Pepin,  contains  seventy 
buildings,  and  is  an  important  river  landing. 

Lake  Pepin  is  a  beautiful  sheet  of  water,  twenty- 
five  miles  long  by  an  average  width  of  five  miles. 
The  bluffs  are  very  rugged  and  precipitous  on  either 
2* 


18 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


shore,  and  the  distance  between  them  does  not 
seem  to  differ  much  from  the  space  between  them 
for  a  hundred  miles  below,  and  "  it  would  seem 
that  the  lake  was  made  by  weeding  out  the  islands, 
and  thus  leaving  the  base  of  bluffs  to  be  bathed  by 
the  Father  of  Waters." 

The  bluffs  here,  on  either  shore,  are  rugged  and 
precipitous.  At  the  great  bend  of  this  lake,  on 
the  northeast  side,  is  a  conspicuous  escarpment, 
celebrated  in  Indian  annals  as  the  Maiden's  Rock, 
or  Cap  des  Sioux.  From  this  rock,  tradition  in- 
forms us  that  "  Winona,  the  beautiful  daughter  of 
an  Indian  chief,  precipated  herself  rather  than  to 
marry  a  man  she  did  not  love.  She  illustrated 
some  of  the  noblest  principles  of  our  nature,  and 
hence  her  name  is  immortal,  while  fashionable 
belles  by  the  thousand  pass  away  and  are  forgotten 
forever." 

The  Maiden's  Rock  is  four  hundred  and  ten  feet 
high — the  perpendicular  wall  of  lower  magnesian 
limestone  being  nearly  two  hundred  feet.  Lake 
Pepin,  near  its  mouth,  has  been  sounded  four  hun- 
dred fathoms  without  finding  bottom. 

Lake  City,  Central  Point,  and  Florence,  are 
within  three  miles  of  each  other,  on  the  west  bank 
of  Lake  Pepin,  on  one  of  the  most  beautiful  plains 
in  the  western  country.  The  high,  picturesque 
bluffs  that  have  hugged  either  shore  so  long,  above 
and  below,  here  stretch  back,  leaving  a  level 
plateau  containing  probably  ten  thousand  acres, 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


19 


dotted  here  and  there  with  small  lakes  of  clear  pure 
water,  and  groves  of  medium-sized  trees.  This 
plain  is  eight  miles  long  on  the  lake  and  three  to 
four  miles  wide  in  the  centre,  bounded  on  the  west 
by  a  range  of  high,  thickly  wooded  bluffs,  and  on 
the  east  by  the  lake  —  a  desirable  spot  for  a  large 
rural  village,  or  watering-place,  or  even  for  farming 
purposes.  This  land  is  upon  the  Half-breed  Re- 
servation, which  accounts  for  the  slow  growth  of 
these  three  embryotic  towns. 

The  shores  of  Lake  Pepin,  and  of  the  river,  for 
twenty  miles  above,  are  lined  with  an  immense 
number  of  logs,  and  two  or  three  steamers  are 
constantly  employed  in  towing  rafts  of  logs  and  of 
lumber  from  the  booms,  at  the  head  of  the  lake, 
through  into  the  current  of  the  river  below.* 

Wacouta,  at  the  head  of  the  lake,  is  a  point  of 
considerable  importance  to  lumbermen,  as  here  the 
rafts  are  many  of  them  prepared  for  their  long 
voyage  down  the  river. 

Red  Wing,  six  miles  above  the  head  of  the  lake, 
is  beautifully  and  advantageously  located,  and  will 
become  a  point  of  commercial  importance.  This 
town  is  the  county-seat  of  Goodhue  county,  and 

*  Red  Rock,  six  miles  below  St.  Paul,  is  a  point  of  some  note. 
Upon  this  rock  certain  tribes  of  Indians  have  for  years  laid  their 
offerings,  and  a  chief  informs  me  that  "no  good  Indian  passes  this 
rock  without  leaving  here  tobacco,  wampum,  beads,  skins,  or  other 
valuables,  as  offerings  to  the  Great  Spirit."  Of  course,  the  more 
valuable  the  offering,  the  better  the  Indian. 


20 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


had  a  population,  in  July,  of  1500,  and  is  rapidly 
improving.  Here  is  located  the  Hamline  Univer- 
sity, under  the  auspices  of  the  M.  E.  Church,  at- 
tended by  upwards  of  seventy  students,  with  a  fine 
brick  edifice  for  the  preparatory  department,  costing 
$10,000.  This  society  have  a  beautiful  site,  em- 
bracing thirty  acres,  upon  which  they  are  preparing 
to  erect  a  college  building  to  cost  $25,000.  The 
Presbyterians  are  building  a  brick  church,  to  be  of 
sufficient  dimensions  to  contain  four  hundred 
hearers.  An  ably  conducted  newspaper,  and  a 
new  hotel  building,  forty-six  by  one  hundred  and 
four  feet,  and  the  U.  S.  land  office  for  this 
district,  are  among  the  more  important  "public 
institutions"  of  this  young  city.  A  lot  on  Main 
street  was  sold,  recently,  for  $500  in  the  morning, 
and  again  in  the  afternoon  for  the  sum  of  $1,000. 
A  part  of  a  lot  on  the  corner  of  Bush  and  Third 
streets,  which  last  year  cost  about  $200,  was  sold 
for  $800. 

Point  Prescott,  twenty-eight  miles  above  Red 
Wing,  on  the  Wisconsin  shore,  is  a  town  of  per- 
haps 800  inhabitants,  and  enjoys  a  healthy  and 
substantial  growth,  has  a  handsome  location,  which 
is  being  well  improved. 

Point  Douglas  lies  opposite  Point  Prescott, 
from  the  northwest  side,  on  the  tongue  of  land 
between  the  junction  of  the  St.  Croix  and  Missis- 
sippi. The  buildings  are  neat  and  the  town  has  a 
business-like  appearance. 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


21 


Hastings,  one  of  the  most  pleasantly  located 
and  rapidly  improving  towns  in  the  Territory,  is 
situated  on  the  west  side  of  the  river,  three  miles 
above  the  mouth  of  Lake  St.  Croix  (Point 
Douglas),  and  twenty-five  miles  below  St.  Paul. 
The  town  site  of  Hastings  is  a  naturally  terraced 
plateau  of  land,  shaded  by  a  natural  grove  of 
medium-sized  oak  trees.  At  the  lower  end  of  the 
town,  and  partly  included  within  the  corporate 
limits,  is  Lake  Isabel,  covering  an  area  of  about 
eighty  acres.  The  town  plat  embraces  four  hun- 
dred and  seventy  acres.  This  town  is  but  fifteen 
months  old,  and  contains  1500  inhabitants !  Every- 
thing in  and  about  the  place  seems  thrifty,  every 
body  busy,  hotels  all  full,  from  cellar  to  garret, 
coaches  and  conveyances  westward,  constantly 
crowded.  Hastings  is  the  natural  river-point  for 
the  fertile  region  of  country  watered  by  the  Can- 
non, Straight,  and  Vermillion  rivers,  and  now  bids 
fair  to  become  one  of  the  largest  and  most  impor- 
tant cities  on  the  Upper  Mississippi,  below  St.  Paul. 

One  mile  southwest  from  Hastings  is  the  Ver- 
million River,  with  a  fall  of  one  hundred  and  fifty 
feet  within  a  mile,  producing  a  succession  of  cas- 
cades. Below  the  falls,  the  river  passes  between 
perpendicular  walls  of  rock,  nearly  a  hundred 
feet  in  height,  standing  two  hundred  feet  apart. 
Through  this  chasm,  the  river  winds  its  way 
beneath  the  deep  dark  foliage  that  hangs  in  tufts 
from  the  projecting  rocks,  or  the  tall,  straight  trees 
that  stand  like  sentinels  on  either  shore. 


CHAPTER  III. 


ST.   PAUL.  HER  PAST,  PRESENT,  AND  FUTURE. 

St.  Paul,  the  capitol  of  the  Territory  and  seat 
of  justice  of  Ramsay  county,  is  pleasantly  sit- 
uated on  the  east  bank  of  the  Mississippi  River, 
upon  a  plain  some  eighty  feet  above  the  river,  and 
eight  hundred  feet  above  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 
The  land  now  occupied  by  the  commercial  empo- 
rium of  this  great  Territory  was  in  part  pre-empted 
in  1838.  The  town  was  surveyed  in  1845,  and  as 
late  as  the  spring  of  1847  there  were  but  three 
white  families  upon  the  ground  now  occupied  by 
a  city  of  10,000  intelligent  and  industrious  Amer- 
ican citizens.  To  recapitulate  :  in  1846,  St.  PauJ 
contained  but  ten  white  inhabitants ;  ten  years 
afterwards,  its  census  shows  a  population  of  10,- 
000 !  We  can  express  our  astonishment  at  this 
rapid  growth,  in  no  better  terms  than  those  used 
by  Lieut.  Maury,  in  his  address  at  the  celebration 
of  the  Minnesota  Historical  Society,  at  St.  Paul, 
on  the  24th  of  June  last.  We  extract  from  his 
remarks  : 

"  Where  are  we,  and  what  are  we  doing  ?  I  find 
it  difficult  to  realize  the  fact  that  I  am  not  among 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


23 


enchanted  spirits  at  work  upon  things  of  magic  in 
some  fairy  land ;  for  here,  and  on  my  way  here,  I 
have  in  this  great  valley  of  the  West  realized 
things,  facts,  and  merits,  which,  could  they  have 
been  foretold  in  our  fathers'  hearing,  would  have 
been  considered  by  them  as  too  extravagant  and 
highly  wrought  even  for  a  nursery  tale,  in  which 
goblins  and  witches  and  fairies  and  magic  are 
allowed  to  figure. 

"  There  was  once  in  dream-land  a  youth,  who, 
the  romancers  tell  us,  possessed  himself  of  a  charm 
by  which  he  would  summon  to  his  possession  the 
most  powerful  genii,  and  have  them  do  his  will. 
Get  for  me,  said  he  to  the  genii,  jewels  of  silver 
and  jewels  of  gold,  and  caskets  of  rubies  and  dia- 
monds and  precious  stones;  and  lo!  riches  and 
wealth  stood  in  great  heaps  and  piles  before  him. 
Build  me,  said  he,  before  the  morning's  sun  shall 
gild  the  east,  a  palace  more  gorgeous  and  splen- 
did than  the  king's ;  let  it,  in  grandeur,  surpass 
all  other  palaces  that  were  ever  built.  And,  in 
the  morning,  there  it  was,  to  the  amazement  and 
wonder  of  the  king,  his  daughter,  his  princes  and 
his  nobles.  We  have  all  read  these  tales  of  enter- 
tainment in  the  nursery,  and,  in  the  simplicity  of 
childhood,  wondered  if  they  were  true,  sure  enough! 

"  But  here,  in  this  western  world,  in  this  blessed 
land  of  liberty,  under  this  glorious  Union,  there  is 
a  people  who  have  a  charm,  by  which  they  can 
call  up,  and  have  called  up,  and  are  every  day  call- 
ing up,  genii  far  more  powerful  than  any  that 


24 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


Aladdin,  with  his  wonderful  lamp,  ever  dreamed 
of.  Give  us,  they  say  in  their  spirit,  indomitable 
enterprise  and  energy ;  give  us  not  caskets  of 
stones,  but  the  elements  of  greatness,  of  human 
prosperity  and  happiness,  and  make  us  mighty  and 
great ;  and  lo  !  as  if  the  wand  of  the  great  magi- 
cian had  touched  the  country,  the  savage  and  the 
wild  beast  disappear,  tall  trees  bow  their  heads, 
and  the  forests  fall  to  the  ground,  and  in  their 
places  we  behold  the  school-house,  the  church  with 
its  tall  taper  spire  pointing  heavenward,  and  broad 
fields  of  yellow  grain  waving  to  the  breeze,  and 
making  the  very  hills  smile  and  leap  with  plenty 
—  making  glad  the  hearts  of  freemen. 

"  They  say  to  it,  the  creation  of  a  place  in  a 
night  is  not  enough  for  us ;  we  want  cities  with 
gilded  domes,  and  temples  of  science,  and  halls 
of  learning,  and  splendid  charities  ;  and  lo  !  they 
stand  where  the  wilderness  was  but  yesterday,  and 
they  rise  up  as  if  from  the  green  bosom  of  your 
smiling  prairies." 

The  site  where  St.  Paul  now  stands,  was,  eight 
years  ago,  a  wilderness ;  now  a  proud  city  of  10,- 
000  inhabitants,  possessing  all  the  elements  of 
refined  civilization,  greets  the  eye  and  astonishes 
every  beholder.  Where  but  a  few  moons  ago  the 
pale-face  would  have  fallen  a  prey  to  the  toma- 
hawk and  the  scalping-knife,  now  stands  the  house 
of  worship,  with  its  tall  spire ;  and  instead  of  the 
war-whoop  is  heard  the  church-going  bell,  or  the 
melodious  voices  of  a  hundred  happy  Sabbath- 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


25 


school  children,  in  praise  to  the  Great  Spirit  who 
has  given  them  a  home  in  this  goodly  land. 

In  a  work  of  this  size,  our  space  is  too  limited 
to  enter  into  details  as  to  the  number  and  charac- 
ter of  the  business  houses  of  St.  Paul.  A  city  of 
its  rapid  growth,  present  importance,  and  future 
greatness,  is  of  itself  a  subject  for  an  entire 
volume.  We  annex,  however,  some  statistics  of 
trade  in  1854,  for  which  I  am  indebted  to  the  Min- 


nesota Pioneer : 

Capital  Business 

invested.  done. 

Groceries      .       .       .       .       .       .       .  $96,500  244,500 

Groceries,  dry  goods,  and  dealers  in  Indian 

goods   152,000  550,000 

Liquors   7,500  53,000 

Jewelry,  clocks,  etc   6,500  23,000 

Hardware,  Iron,  etc   43,000  85,000 

Books,  stationery,  etc   21,000  50,000 

Dry  goods     .......  115,000  251,000 

Fancy  goods   4,000  15,000 

Confectionery,  fruits,  etc   5,000  15,000 

Druggists  .   37,000  99,000 

Furniture   8,000  41,000 

Auction  and  commission    ....  90,000 

Tailors'  and  clothing  establishments      .       .  59,000  148,000 

Stoves,  tinware,  etc   97,000  99,000 

Shoe  dealers  and  manufacturers  .  .  37,000  90,000 
Saddlery  and  harness  manufacturers  and 

dealers  in  leather     ....  8,400  28,000 

Forwarding  and  commission  merchants        .  489,000 

Bankers  ,  3,559,000 

Express  ........  3,158 

Livery  business  61,000  69,009 


$719,400  $5,868,500 


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MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


"  A  glance  at  the  above  figures  will  show  what 
St.  Paul  is  in  its  mercantile  capacity,  and  what 
manner  of  growth  it  has  had  since  1849,  when  its 
entire  business  amounted  to  about  $131,000  only. 
From  small  beginnings  St.  Paul  has  grown  great  as 
rapidly  as  a  bird  unfolds  its  wings  for  an  upward 
flight.  No  sudden  combination  of  circumstances 
has  brought  about  this  result.  It  has  been  accom- 
plished by  hard  and  unremitted  labor. 

"  A  bird's  eye  view  is  given  of  the  manufactures 
of  St.  Paul  as  they  are  now.  No  contrast  can  be 
made  of  them  with  1849,  for  the  reason  that,  in 
that  year,  the  principal  and  in  fact  only  manufac- 
turers in  St.  Paul  were  those  who  wielded  the 
axe,  the  hammer,  and  the  plane  —  before  whose 
sturdy  strokes  the  forest  bowed  to  the  ground 
above  which  it  had  stood  so  grandly,  and  by  whose 
industry  log  cabins  and  shanties  were  made  to 
occupy  the  'clearings.'  A  gratifying  result  can 
be  she  i7n  in  this  department  of  St.  Paul's  wealth. 
The  oa :\  who  six  years  ago  would  have  ventured 
to  predict  that  there  would  be  at  this  time  in  St. 
Paul  stear;i  engines  driving  saw-mills,  sash  ma- 
chines, turning  lathes,  printing  presses,  etc.,  would 
have  been  regarded  as  wanting  common  sense  in  a 
lamentable  degree;  but  time  proves  it — all  cf  them 
are  here;  and,  what  is  better  ?  xnora  crv-I  more 
are  coming*' 

Of  rKkniife^orieB,  I  noil^d  oiio  mill,  ivilfa  ma- 
chinery d&v&*  by  an  eagixie  of  seventy  horss- 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


27 


power,  capable  of  turning  out  32,000  feet  lumber, 
20,000  shingles,  16,000  laths,  and  planing,  tongue- 
ing  and  grooving  12,000  feet  of  flooring  every- 
day. Beside  this,  there  are  four  other  mills  of 
less  capacity,  but  producing  from  five  to  ten  thou- 
sand feet  of  lumber  per  day.  There  are  also  two 
grist  mills,  one  foundry,  one  door,  sash,  and  blind 
factory,  etc.  An  extensive  establishment  for  the 
manufacture  of  agricultural  implements  is  about 
going  into  operation. 

Large  and  substantial  edifices  of  stone  and  brick 
are  being  erected,  indicating  that  architectural  taste 
and  wealth,  civilization  and  refinement,  are  here. 
Of  the  principal  public  buildings,  mention  may  be 
made  of  the  State  House,  first  Presbyterian  Church, 
Baldwin  School,  Court-house,  public  Market-house, 
Winslow  Hotel,  Santominy  Hotel,  and  the  Fuller 
House.  The  latter  building  is  one  hundred  and 
twenty  feet  square,  and  five  stories  high.  In  ad- 
dition to  many  business  houses  and  dwellings, 
there  are  now  in  process  of  erection,  or  about  to 
be  commenced,  a  Catholic  cathedral,  a  Masonic 
hall,  a  theatre,  and  an  Odd  Fellows'  hall,  all  to  be 
splendid  buildings.  The  material  now  preparing 
for  the  cathedral  indicates  that  it  will  be  one  of 
the  most  magnificent  buildings  in  the  West. 

Some  idea  may  be  formed  of  the  amount  of 
travel  thitherward,  from  the  fact  that  the  receipts 
of  the  Winslow  House,  the  principal  hotel  in  St. 
Paul,  in  June  last  were  $6500,  and  about  tffe 


28 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK, 


same  in  July — averaging  $6000  per  month.  There 
are  twelve  hotels  in  the  city,  each  doing  a  good 
business !  "  During  the  past  season  the  arriving 
steamboats  landed  upwards  of  forty-five  thousand 
passengers.  It  is  entirely  safe  to  estimate  that 
each  of  these  persons  left,  in  necessary  expenses, 
the  sum  of  ten  dollars,  and  this  will  give  an  ad- 
dition of  $450,000  to  the  currency  of  the  place." 


CHAPTER  IV. 


THE  SIGHT-SEER'S  DIURNAL  DRIVE. 

To  those  who  have  but  a  day  or  two  to  spend 
in  sight-seeing  in  Minnesota,  I  will  mention  the 
most  advantageous  route.  Procure,  at  one  of  the 
livery  stables  in  St.  Paul,  early  in  the  morning,  a 
conveyance  suited  to  the  number  in  company ;  then 
proceed,  via  St.  Anthony,  to  Cheever's  observatory 
in  St.  Anthony  City,  about  half  a  mile  below,  yet 
in  full  view  of  the  Falls  of  St.  Anthony.  This 
tower  is  about  one  hundred  feet  high,  and  affords 
an  unsurpassed  view  of  the  rapids  and  cataract,  of 
the  beautiful  cities  of  St.  Anthony  and  Min- 
neapolis, and  of  the  wire  suspension  bridge,  span- 
ning the  Father  of  Waters,  between  them ;  also,  a 
view  of  an  immense  extent  of  country  in  every 
direction,  forming  "  one  of  the  most  charming  and 
extensive  landscapes  in  Minnesota."  This  obser- 
vatory is  safe,  and  you  need  but  follow  the  rules  — 
"  pay  your  dime  and  climb." 

Thence  you  continue  up  to  the  Falls  of  St. 
Anthony.  Here  you  are  upon  the  Niagara  of  the 
northwest,  first  discovered  by  Hennepin  in  1680, 
and  now  the  object  of  admiration  for  thousands  of 

(29) 


30 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


visitors  who  throng  its  banks  annually.  (See  full 
description  on  another  page.)  After  spending  a 
proper  time  at  the  Falls,  and  in  looking  through  the 
immense  lumber  manufactories  thereon,  you  drive 
through  St.  Anthony,  observing  the  neatness  of 
the  buildings,  the  thrift  and  energy  of  her  business 
men,  and  the  rapid  growth  of  the  city.  Having 
gained  from  editors  or  land  agents  what  informa- 
tion, you  may  wish  respecting  the  place,  you  drive 
across  that  magnificent  structure,  the  wire  suspen- 
sion bridge, — the  first  that  ever  spanned  the  noble 
Mississippi.  Having  reached  the  western  bank, 
you  are  in  Minneapolis,  a  town  which,  for  beauty 
of  location  and  rapidity  of  growth,  is  scarcely  ex- 
celled by  any  other  in  the  Territory.  Next  you 
drive  to  the  Minneapolis  Hotel,  where  yourself 
and  your  team  will  be  well  cared  for.  Dr.  Keith 
the  gentlemanly  proprietor,  will  cheerfully  give  you 
any  general  information  respecting  the  town  and 
country.  Here  is  the  United  States  land  office, 
besides  the  land  agencies  of  Messrs.  Snyder  and 
McFarlane,  and  Hancock  and  Thomas,  where 
those  who  are  looking  for  land,  or  desire  to  enter 
into  a  speculation,  will  not  fail  to  call 

From  Minneapolis  you  pass  in  a  westerly  direc- 
tion nearly  six  miles  to  lakes  Harriet  and  Calhoun, 
two  beautiful,  sparkling  gems,  encircled  by  a  thin 
belt  of  thrifty  young  oaks.  These  lakes  are  each 
about  three  miles  in  length  and  two  in  width.  The 
water  is  clear  as  crystal,  and  having  a  fine,  pebbly 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


31 


beach.  These  lakes  are  filled  with  an  abundance 
of  fish. 

Six  miles  farther  and  you  are  at  Minnehaha 
Falls,  probably  the  most  romantic  and  beautiful 
cascade  in  the  Union.  The  stream  falls  forty-five 
feet  perpendicularly  into  a  magnificent  basin  below. 
As  the  rock  projects  several  feet,  parties  can  travel 
entirely  around,  under  the  Falls. 

One  mile  farther  is  Fort  Snelling,  the  largest  and 
most  eligibly  situated  military  post  in  the  Territory. 
Here  you  are  ferried  across  the  Mississippi,  and 
proceed  to  within  two  miles  of  St.  Paul,  where  you 
find  Fountain  Cave.  This  is  truly  a  curiosity. 
The  cave  appears  to  have  been  worn  from  the 
sand  rock,  in  which  it  exists,  by  the  pure  crystal 
stream  passing  through  it.  At  the  entrance  this 
cave  is  about  fifteen  feet  in  diameter,  the  opening 
decreasing  in  size  as  you  proceed.  The  writer 
penetrated  the  cave  several  rods,  and  found  the 
pure,  soft,  white  sandstone  to  extend  throughout  its 
entire  length.  About  three  hundred  feet  from  the 
mouth  is  a  cascade,  some  six  feet  in  height,  beyond 
which  the  passage  becomes  contracted. 

Two  miles  farther,  and  you  are  again  at  St, 
Paul,  in  time  for  tea,  having  visited  St.  Anthony 
City,  St.  Anthony,  the  Falls,  the  suspension  bridge, 
Hennepin  Island,  Minneapolis,  Lake  Harriet,  Lake 
Calhoun,  Minnehaha  Falls,  Fort  Snelling,  Foun- 
tain Cave,  and  St.  Paul,  all  in  one  day!  No- 


32 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK 


where  else  on  this  continent  can  so  much  of  interest 
and  beauty  be  seen  in  so  short  a  time. 

Those  who  have  time  to  tarry  longer  at  the  Falls 
will  find  stages  leaving  each  of  the  hotels  for  St. 
Anthony,  twice  a  day — at  7  o'clock  a.  m.,  and  2 
p.  m.  A  daily  line  of  stages  also  runs  up  the 
beautiful  valley  of  the  Minnesota  River  to  South 
Bend ;  another  line  to  Stillwater,  and  daily  or  tri- 
weekly lines  to  the  principal  points  of  interest  and 
importance. 


CHAPTER  V, 


THE  MINNESOTA  (FORMERLY  ST.  PETERS)  VALLEY. 

By  treaties  made  in  1851,  with  the  Dakotah 
Indians,  the  United  States  Government  obtained  a 
title  to  the  territory  "  lying  between  the  Mississippi 
River  on  the  east  and  the  Big  Sioux  on  the  west, 
extending  through  four  parallels  of  latitude  and 
five  degrees  of  longitude,  and  covering  a  superficial 
area  of  forty-five  thousand  square  miles." 

In  the  heart  of  this  purchase,  through  rich  allu- 
vial lands,  through  savannas  of  luxuriant  grass, 
through  dense  forests  and  through  flowery  prairies, 
the  Minnesota  River  winds  its  course  for  hundreds 
of  miles.  Less  than  five  years  have  elapsed  since 
the  red  man  held  undisputed  sway  in  this  valley. 
Then  he  was  the  sole  occupant,  and  could  truly 
exclaim, 

"  I  am  monarch  of  all  I  survey, 
My  right  there  is  none  to  dispute ;  " 

and  as,  in  his  freedom,  he  roamed  over  the  vast 
prairies  and  hunted  through  the  deep  shady  forests, 
or  lightly  skipped  the  waters  of  the  Minnetouka, 
he  fearlessly  and  realizingly  exclaimed, 

"I  am  lord  of  the  fowl  and  the  brute. " 

(33) 


34 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


Five  years  have  elapsed,  and  the  traveller  now 
finds  the  varied  landscape  of  this  beautiful  valley- 
dotted  here  and  there  with  a  residence  or  a  farm- 
house, or,  perchance,  a  thrifty  yearling  town,  with 
its  hundred  buildings  —  stores,  school-house,  and 
church  —  the  centre  for  a  well-settled  and  thor- 
oughly-tilled agricultural  district ;  while,  at  proper 
distances  along  the  valley,  are  erected  grist  and 
saw-mills,  supplied  from  the  large  fields'  fruitful 
yield,  or  with  timber  from  the  Bois  Franc,  or  Great 
"Woods,  or  from  the  numerous  groves  that  beskirt 
the  shores  of  this  river  and  the  lakes  adjacent;  for, 
in  the  language  of  John  G.  Whittier,  our  American 
poet: 

"  Behind  the  red  squaw's  birch  canoe 
The  steamer  smokes  and  raves, 
And  city  lots  are  staked  for  sale 
Above  old  Indian  graves. 

"  I  hear  the  tread  of  pioneers 
Of  nations  yet  to  be  — 
The  first  low  wash  of  waves,  where  soon 
Shall  roll  a  human  sea." 

Fort  Snelling.  —  After  leaving  St.  Paul,  by 
land,  the  first  point  of  interest  reached  is  Fort 
Snelling,  situated  on  the  west  side  of  the  Missis- 
sippi River,  at  the  junction  of  the  Minnesota  with 
the  Mississippi,  six  miles  above  St.  Paul.  "  The  site 
is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  and  picturesque  imagin- 
able, occupying  the  front  or  verge  of  the  extensive 
plateau,  at  the  angle  formed  by  the  confluence  of 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


35 


the  Minnesota  with  the  Mississippi.  The  plateau 
or  table-land,  upon  which  the  post  is  situated,  rises 
abruptly  from  the  banks  of  these  streams  to  an 
elevation  of  one  hundred  feet,  when  it  merges  into 
a  level  plain,  stretching  in  the  rear  as  far  as  the  eye 
can  reach,  and  unbroken,  except  by  the  indentation 
of  streams  and  limpid  lakes,  which  here  and  there 
lay  embosomed  upon  its  surface."  This  site  was 
purchased  by  Lieutenant  Pike  in  1805.  In  1819 
the  fort  buildings  were  erected,  and  the  fort  estab- 
lished, under  the  supervision  of  Colonel  Snelling, 
from  whom  it  derives-  its  name.  This  fort,  being 
no  longer  needed  for  the  purposes  for  which  it  was 
originally  erected,  is  now  used  principally  as  a  ren- 
dezvous for  soldiers,  and  as  a  storehouse  where 
supplies  are  held  for  points  farther  interior. 

From  this  point,  up  the  Minnesota  valley,  the 
road  passes  over  a  beautiful  prairie,  skirted  in  the 
distance,  on  the  north  by  woods  along  Minnetouka 
or  Little  Falls  Creek,  and  on  the  south  by  the 
beautiful,  well-timbered  valley  of  the  Minnesota. 
Sixteen  miles  from  St.  Paul,  Oak  Grove,  a  fine 
body  of  woodland,  is  reached.  One  mile  farther, 
and  you  reach  Mr.  Gibson's  farmhouse,  where  you 
will  find  an  excellent  dinner,  —  which,  by  the  way, 
you  may  not  be  sure  of  at  every  stopping-place. 
Thence  to  Gh?.kopee  the  iGcA  is  over  a  prairie, 
skirted  with  oak  openings  or  groves  alon^  the 


CHAPTER  VI, 


TOWNS  AND   VILLAGES   IN  THE  MINNESOTA  VALLEY. 

Shakopee  is  the  county-seat  of  Scott  county, 
and  is  twenty-five  miles  southwest  of  St.  Paul  by 
land  and  thirty  by  water ;  is  beautifully  situated  on 
an  elevated  plateau,  gradually  sloping  back  from 
the  Minnesota  River  for  two  miles  to  a  forest  of 
tall  heavy  trees.  The  town  plat  embraces  three 
hundred  and  twenty  acres,  which  is  liberally  laid 
off  into  large  lots  and  wide,  roomy  streets.  This 
place  has  many  natural  advantages,  among  which 
may  be  enumerated,  a  good  landing  and  large 
levee,  on  a  river  which  is  navigable  to  this  point 
all  seasons  of  the  year ;  an  abundance  of  timber- 
land  in  adjacent  groves,  with  saw-mills  to  manu- 
facture lumber ;  excellent  clay  for  brick,  and  several 
lime-kilns,  which  supply,  not  only  the  wants  of 
this  place,  but  those  of  the  towns  above. 

A  gentleman  who  has  worked  for  a  long  number 
of  years  in  the  Galena  lead  mines,  stated  to  me 
that  he  found  indications  of  lead  in  the  vicinity  of 
Shakopee.  So  certain  is  he  of  the  existence  of 
lead  at  a  particular  point,  that  he  is  endeavoring 

(36) 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


37 


to  negotiate  a  lease  of  the  land,  in  order  to  com- 
mence mining. 

Add  to  these  the  elevated,  healthy  site  for  resi- 
dences, with  clear  cold  water  bubbling  up  from  the 
earth  in  numerous  springs  ;  and  you  have  advan- 
tages which  a  prince  might  envy. 

Shakopee  stands  on  the  site  of  an  Indian  village, 
occupied,  till  within  the  past  three  years,  by  the 
band  of  Shakopee,  or  Little  Six,  a  noted  chief 
among  the  Sioux.  It  now  contains  about  800 
inhabitants,  principally  from  the  East.  Here  are 
two  churches,  an  ably-conducted  newspaper,  good 
schools,  and  many  of  the  refinements  of  larger  and 
older  towns.  The  Wasson  receives  and  deserves 
an  extensive  patronage.  A  new  three-story  brick 
hotel  is  being  erected,  also  several  warehouses  and 
stores,  brick,  stone,  and  frame.  This  town  has  had 
an  unprecedented  growth,  and  is  still  improving 
rapidly  and  substantially.  In  the  township  in 
which  Shakopee  is  situated  are  nine  lakes,  varying 
from  half  a  mile  to  two  miles  in  width.  In  Scott 
county  are  five  other  towns :  Belle  Plaine,  Louis- 
ville, Jordan,  Mount  Pleasant,  and  Belief ontaine. 

Mount  Pleasant  is  situated  on  Long  Lake, 
about  six  miles  from  Shakopee,  and  is  represented 
as  being  an  eligible  site  for  a  town.  On  the  out- 
let of  this  lake  is  a  saw  and  grist-mill,  doing  well. 
This  town  has  been  but  recently  laid  out,  and 
offers  a  chance  for  beginners. 

Bellefontaine  is  situated  on  the  banks  of  Spring 

4 


38 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


Lake,  eight  miles  from  Shakopee.  This  lake  con- 
tains myriads  of  fish  of  the  finest  quality ;  the  ad- 
joining woods  abound  in  wild  game  of  various 
kinds,  while  from  its  banks  gush  forth,  in  never- 
failing  springs,  an  abundance  of  pure  cold  water. 
The  proprietors  offer  great  inducements  to  mill- 
wrights and  mechanics. 

Jordan  City,  eleven  miles  above  Shakopee,  and 
one  mile  from  the  river,  is  the  first  town  reached  on 
the  road  leading  to  Mankato.  Here  are  one  grist 
and  two  saw-mills,  hotel,  plough  factory,  and  100 
inhabitants ;  merchants  and  mechanics  are  wanted. 

Belle  Plaine  is  well  named.  It  is  situated  upon 
one  of  the  most  beautiful  prairies  in  the  valley, 
about  midway  between  St.  Paul  and  South  Bend. 
It  is  surrounded  by  timber  lands  of  the  best  qual- 
ity, has  a  good  landing  for  steamboats,  is  a  pleas- 
ant and  healthy  locality  for  a  home,  and  a  good 
opening  for  business  men.  Hon.  A.  G.  Chatfield, 
associate  judge,  resides  here,  and  is  one  of  the  pro- 
prietors. The  town  is  new,  though  it  contains 
two  hotels,  a  saw-mill,  etc.,  and  is  being  settled  by 
persons  of  intelligence  and  energy. 

Yorkville,  on  the  opposite  bank,  a  short  distance 
above  Shakopee,  is  settled  principally  by  Germans. 
They  projected  this  town  as  the  river  point  for 
Lake  Minnetouka,  which  is  seven  miles  distant ; 
but  this  cannot  be  accomplished  until  a  road  is 
made  across  an  almost  impassable  intervening 
swamp. 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


39 


Chaska,  three  miles  above,  has  a  good  location, 
and  is  in  a  prosperous  condition.  Here  Mr.  Oliver 
Farribault  formerly  had  an  extensive  trading  estab- 
lishment. The  place  was  then  known  as  u  Little 
Prairie,"  and  was  settled  principally  by  Canadians, 
most  of  whom  left  with  him. 

Carver,  three  miles  above  Chaska,  is  at  the 
mouth  of  Carver's  Creek.  "  The  rapid  increase  of 
settlements  in  the  vicinity,  and  the  energy  with 
which  the  proprietors  are  pushing  their  improve- 
ments, give  promise  of  a  quick  and  healthy  growth." 

Louisville  is  two  miles  below  the  rapids,  and  is 
the  centre  for  numerous  settlements,  made  last  year 
and  still  making ;  but  the  location  forbids  of  a  very 
extensive  settlement. 

San  Francisco,  the  county-seat  of  the  county  of 
Carver,  is  on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  a  short 
distance  above  the  rapids.  Its  location  is  pleasant 
and  advantageous,  and  during  seasons  of  high 
water  it  commands  the  business  at  the  rapids. 

Between  Shakopee  and  Belle  Plaine,  the  road 
passes  over  some  very  poor  soil.  Sand  Prairie, 
just  above  Jordan,  is  three  miles  in  length  and  one 
to  one  and  three-quarters  in  width,  bounded  on  the 
south  by  the  Great  Woods,  and  on  the  north  by  a 
marsh  or  flat  a  mile  or  more  in  width,  reaching  to 
the  river,  and  extending  some  distance  along  the 
valley. 

Henderson,  the  county-seat  of  Sibley  county,  is 
a  centrally  located  town,  of  much  thrift  and  en- 


40 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


ergy.  "  The  location  is  altogether  too  low,  and  in 
the  midst  of  a  dense  forest."  These  objections 
have  been  urged.  Embankments  are  being  made, 
which  will  protect  the  town  from  high  water ;  and 
the  giant  oaks  are  fast  giving  way  to  residences 
and  business  blocks.  Henderson  is  the  landing  for 
a  large  and  rapidly  settling  portion  of  country. 
The  roads  from  the  river  westward  are  tolerable ; 
those  from  above  or  below,  along  the  river,  almost 
intolerable.  J.  R.  Brown,  Esq.,  publishes  here  one 
of  the  best  country-town  papers  in  the  Territory, 
and,  if  Henderson  does  not  become  a  large  and 
populous  city,  it  will  not  be  his  fault,  nor  will  it  be 
because  the  wants  of  a  large  and  populous  coun- 
try do  not  demand  a  commercial  point  thereabouts, 
but  for  the  reasons  above  mentioned.  Roads  from 
Fort  Ridgely,  from  Red  Wing,  from  St.  Paul, 
and  from  Sauk  Rapids,  centre  at  this  point.  This 
place  contains  two  hotels,  four  stores,  one  steam 
saw-mill,  and  about  300  inhabitants. 

Clarksville,  a  new  town,  just  laid  out  on  the  op- 
posite side  of  the  river,  is  situated  on  a  more  ele- 
vated site,  and  promises  to  improve  rapidly.  The 
ferry  at  this  point  is  doing  a  good  business. 

Le  Sueur,  the  county-seat  of  Le  Sueur  county, 
is  five  miles  above  Henderson  and  sixty  from  St. 
Paul.  The  town,  though  of  less  than  a  year's 
growth,  contains  two  saw-mills,  three  hotels,  three 
stores,  and  dwellings  in  proportion.  Cabinet-mak- 
ers, carpenters,  and  blacksmiths  are  wanted.  Actual 


4 

MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


41 


settlers  can  hear  of  good  claims  of  timber  near 
the  river,  by  applying  to  J.  S.  Perry,  tailor,  at  Le 
Sueur.  The  town  is  situated  on  a  sloping  prairie, 
gradually  rising  from  the  river,  not  very  unlike  the 
site  of  Peoria,  111.  This  prairie  is  nine  miles  in 
length  and  four  in  width,  surrounded  by  a  heavy 
forest  of  timber.  Le  Sueur  county  contains  a  pop- 
ulation of  upwards  of  2500,  and  is  rapidly  filling 
up.  In  this  county  also  are  Lexington,  situated 
on  the  west  side  of  Cedar  Lake,  ten  miles  east ; 
Scotch  Lake,  twelve  miles  southeast,  where  a  large 
steam  saw-mill  and  other  improvements  are  being 
erected ;  Waterville,  thirty  miles  southeast,  a  snug 
little  village,  having  a  post-office  and  water-mills. 
Lake  Elysian,  twenty-five  miles  southeast,  is  situ- 
ated on  a  fine  lake  of  the  same  name,  and  is  rap^ 
idly  building  up ;  Ottowa,  on  the  Minnesota  River, 
six  miles  above  Le  Sueur,  has  a  fine  saw-mill,  and 
will  be  a  nucleus  for  a  large,  well-settled  neighbor- 
hood. After  a  ride  of  seven  miles,  you  reach 
Traverse  de  Sioux  (the  crossing  of  the  Sioux),  one 
of  the  oldest  settlements  in  the  Territory,  and  the 
county-seat  of  Nicollet  county.  In  1823,  the  Co- 
lumbia Fur  Company  established  a  post  here,  and 
changed  the  mode  of  transporting  supplies,  and 
exchanges  —  abandoning  the  Mackinaw  boats  and 
introducing  the  use  of  carts  instead,  which  are 
still  employed  by  the  Red  River  traders  of  the 
North.  "  This  being  the  lowest  point  on  the  Min- 
nesota River  that  could  be  reached  without  passing 

4* 


42 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


through  timber,  the  place  in  a  short  time  became  a 
depot  for  the  entire  trade  of  the  upper  Sioux,  and 
a  general  rendezvous  for  Indians  near  and  remote." 
The  population  of  Traverse  de  Sioux  is  about 
600.  Mills  and  mechanics  are  much  needed,  and 
would  give  a  new  impetus  to  this  naturally  impor- 
tant point. 

St.  Peter's  is  a  newly  laid  out  town,  seventy- 
two  miles  above  St.  Paul,  forty-three  above  Shak- 
opee,  and  about  twelve  below  South  Bend.  The 
site  of  this  town  is  beautifully  and  advantageously 
located.  It  contains  saw  and  grist-mills,  ware- 
houses and  stores,  four  hotels  (a  two-story  one  of 
stone*),  and  a  well-conducted  newspaper,  published 
by  the  company.  Opposite  the  town  lies  Spring 
Lake  and  several  chalybeate  springs.  St.  Peter 
contains  about  400  inhabitants,  and  is  improving 
rapidly.  The  prairie,  on  which  this  town  and 
Traverse  are  located,  is  one  of  the  handsomest  in 
the  valley. 

Kasota,  three  miles  above  St.  Peter,  is  a  new 
place,  properly  situated  for  a  good  manufacturing 
town.  The  outlet  from  Lake  Washington  has 
here  a  fall  of  twenty-two  feet,  which  is  as  yet  but 
partially  improved.  A  small  steamboat  and  a 
flat  boat  are  being  built  here.  Another  mil]  is 
building  on  this  outlet,  six  miles  from  Kasota. 


CHAPTER  VII. 


THE  GREAT  SOUTH   BEND  AND  THE   BLUE  EARTH 
COUNTRY. 

Mankato  is  situated  eighty  miles  above  St. 
Paul,  and  four  miles  below  the  most  southerly 
point  of  the  "  great  south  bend  of  the  St.  Peter's 
(now  Minnesota)  River."  It  contains  some  sixty 
buildings,  three  stores,  hotel,  etc.  A  large  steam- 
mill  was  in  course  of  erection  in  July.  There  has 
been  a  dispute  between  two  of  the  proprietors, 
about  the  town  plat,  and  good  titles  could  not  be 
obtained.  This  fact  has  retarded  the  growth  of 
the  place,  and  done  much  to  increase  the  sale  of 
lots  in  Mankato  city,  a  town  adjoining  on  the 
river,  below,  belonging  to  a  St.  Paul  land  agent. 
Owing  to  the  scarcity  of  lumber,  few  buildings  are 
being  erected  this  season.  "When  the  title  to  lots 
shall  have  been  settled,  and  this  steam-mill  com- 
pleted, the  citizens  anticipate  a  better  state  of 
things.  This  is  the  county-seat  of  Blue  Earth 
county;  some  idea  of  the  growth  of  which  may 
be  gained  from  the  facts  that  in  1853  the  total 
amount  of  personal  property  subject  to  taxation 
was  less  than  $3000,  while  in  1855  it  amounted 

(43) 


44 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


to  $40,000,  and  this  year,  1856,  to  $142,277.50! 
Information  of  this  town  or  county  may  be  learned 
from  Robert  Wardlaw,  Esq.,  merchant  at  Man- 
kato. 

Mankato  is  the  river  point  for  the  Winnebago 
Indian  Agency,  twelve  miles  distant.  (See  chap- 
ter on  "  Indian  tribes  in  Minnesota.") 

South  Bend  is  a  town  recently  laid  out,  four 
miles  above  Mankato,  on  the  extreme  south  bend 
of  the  Minnesota  River.  The  Blue  Earth  River, 
one  mile  below,  is  bridged  near  its  mouth  with  a 
trestle  bridge,  which  cost  $10,000,  and  which  is 
being  erected  by  government,  on  the  United  States 
mail  road  leading  from  St.  Paul  to  Sioux  City, 
Iowa,  on  the  Missouri  River.  This  road  leaves 
the  river  at  South  Bend,  and  strikes  southwest  to 
Sioux  City.  The  landing  on  the  river  is  excellent, 
having  a  natural  and  easy  grade  into  the  town. 
The  high,  level  plateau,  upon  which  the  town  is 
located,  is  sufficiently  extensive  for  the  depot 
grounds  of  the  various  railroads  in  contemplation, 
or  as  the  site  of  the  great  commercial  emporium 
which  the  geographical  situation  of  the  country 
and  the  wants  of  the  people  demand  at  this  point. 

The  south  bend  of  the  Minnesota  has  long  been 
looked  upon  as  possessing  local  advantages  which 
promise,  at  no  distant  day,  to  insure  the  building 
up  of  a  large  commercial  city,  which  shall  be  the 
centre  of  this  unequalled  agricultural  district,  and 
the  terminus  of  at  least  two  important  railroads 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK, 


45 


from  Iowa:  one  from  Clinton,  via  Cedar  Rapids,  or 
from  Dubuque;  the  other  from  Fort  Dodge  and 
the  capital  of  the  State,  tapping  her  rich  beds  of 
coal  and  gypsum. 

Whether  Mankato  or  South  Bend  shall  be  the 
city  depends  somewhat  upon  the  energy  of  the  pro- 
prietors and  citizens  of  each,  but  principally  upon 
the  feasibility  of  routes  for  railroads  to  the  river, 
at  either  point. 

The  Blue  Earth  Country.  —  One  of  the  most 
fertile  and  most  beautiful  portions  of  the  Territory 
lies  between  South  Bend  and  the  Iowa  line.  Of 
this  region,  M.  Nicollet,  in  his  report  of  the  "  Hy- 
drographic  Basin  of  the  Upper  Mississippi,"  says  : 
u  I  shall  now  proceed  to  give  a  short  account  of 
some  of  the  regions  of  country  adjoining  the 
Coteau  des  Prairies.  Among  these,  that  which 
appeared  to  me  most  favorable  is  the  one  watered 
by  the  < Bold  Mankato' or  Blue  Earth  River,  and 
to  which  I  have  given  the  name  of  { Undine  Re- 
gion.5 

"  The  great  number  of  navigable  tributaries  of 
the  Blue  Earth,  spreading  themselves  out  in  the 
shape  of  a  fan  ;  the  group  of  lakes,  surrounded  by 
well-wooded  hills;  some  wide-spreading  prairies 
with  a  fertile  soil ;  others  apparently  less  favored, 
but  open  to  improvement — the  whole  of  them 
together  bestow  upon  this  region  a  most  picturesque 
appearance." 


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MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


Speaking  of  this  point  on  the  river,  and  of  the 
country  surrounding,  J.  Wesley  Bond  says : 

"  Here  it  is,  upon  the  glittering  banks  of  two 
silvery  streams  of  spacious  capacity,  with  fertile 
prairies,  opening  to  the  warm,  sunny  south,  sweep- 
ing off  for  miles  and  miles  till  the  closing  vista  is 
bounded  by  fringes  of  forests,  while,  in  the  rear, 
close  to  the  banks  of  the  river,  stands  heavy  timber, 
ready  for  the  builder's  hands,  to  be  converted  into 
domiciles  of  comfort  or  elegance." 

On  the  Wattonwon  and  other  tributaries  of  the 
Blue  Earth  are  numerous  mill  privileges,  unim- 
proved, with  an  abundance  of  water  power  and 
timber  land,  and  centrally  located  for  grist-mills. 
Some  of  these  sites  were  subject  to  pre-emption  in 
July  last,  when  I  travelled  through  this  country. 

In  October,  1854,  the  first  claims  were  made  be- 
tween the  Wattonwon  and  Blue  Earth ;  in  July, 
1856,  every  one  hundred  and  sixty  acre  tract  was 
"claimed"  and  settled.  One  claim  was  shown  me 
which  was  sold  the  week  before  for  $2000.  As  to 
the  fertility  of  the  soil,  I  need  only  say,  I  saw  on 
these  streams  as  fine  crops,  taking  all  kinds  of 
grain  into  account,  as  there  are  in  the  Territory.  A 
piece  of  prairie,  broken  last  fall,  and  sown  with 
wheat,  harrowed  in  this  spring,  yields  a  fraction 
less  than  fifty  bushels  to  the  acre  !  How  will  that 
do  for  a  sod  crop  ? 


CHAPTER  VIII 


THE   MINNESOTA  ABOVE  SOUTH  BEND. 

The  Minnesota  River  is  navigable  a  portion  of 
every  year,  as  high  up  as  Yellow  Medicine,  four 
hundred  and  fifty  miles.  The  distances  from  St. 
Paul  to  the  numerous  towns  on  this  river  may  be 
seen  by  reference  to  the  table  of  distances  on 
another  page. 

Eureka,  at  the  outlet  of  Swan  Lake,  twenty-five 
miles  above  South  Bend,  has  a  beautiful  location, 
and  is  surrounded  by  a  very  fertile  district  of 
country. 

My  friend,  Mr.  Phillips,  of  the  Shakopee  Inde- 
pendent, having  made  a  trip  to  the  Upper  Sioux 
Agency  since  I  left  the  Territory,  I  give  his  ac- 
count, which  I  am  ready  to  vouch  as  correct  in  all 
particulars.  He  says :  "  The  numerous  well-im- 
proved farms  which  line  the  road  from  Shakopee  to 
Belle  Plain,  bear  every  evidence  of  prosperity  and 
industry.  The  vast  fields  of  waving  grain  show 
that  the  farmers  have  made  ample  preparations  for 
an  extensive  harvest,  and  their  expectations  are 
about  to  be  realized ;  and  who  is  more  worthy  to 
receive  that  reward  than  the  tiller  of  the  soil  ? 

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MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


"Belle  Plain,  on  the  Minnesota  River,  although 
an  old  familiar  point,  has  been  but  recently  located 
as  a  town  site,  under  the  auspices  of  Hon.  A.  G. 
Chatfield  and  others,  and  bears  evident  signs  of 
improvement  and  go-aheaditiveness.  It  is  beauti- 
fully located,  and,  with  the  advantages  with  which 
it  is  surrounded  to  recommend  it  to  favorable 
notice,  must  become  the  nucleus  of  a  large  and 
thriving  settlement. 

"  Next  morning's  sunrise  finds  us  dashing  over 
the  prairies ;  and  one  who  has  not  felt  the  delightful 
sensation  that  is  experienced  from  a  gallop  at  this 
hour  can  form  but  an  imperfect  idea  of  its  effect 
upon  the  system.  The  spirits  rise  perceptibly,  the 
heart  expands,  and  a  new,  strange  feeling  pervades 
the  whole  frame.  One  who  will  pursue  this  mode 
of  exercise  can  laugh  disease  to  scorn. 

"  We  pass  through  the  4  Big  Woods,'  and  our 
road  is  dotted  numerously  with  fine,  well-improved 
farms. 

"  The  road  from  Henderson  to  Fort  Ridgely  lies 
through  an  almost  unbroken  prairie,  and  the  land, 
with  very  few  exceptions,  remains  unclaimed. 
Situated  as  it  is,  possessing  but  few  attractions  to 
recommend  it  to  favorable  notice,  it  must  remain 
so  for  a  long  time  to  come.  The  land  is  excellent, 
but  wood  and  water,  those  two  great  desideratums 
to  settlers,  cannot  be  procured. 

"Fort  Ridgely  is  situated  on  the  Minnesota 
River,  about  two  hundred  miles  from  its  mouth,  on 
the  Sioux  reservation.    The  fort  consists  of  two 


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49 


large  stone  houses,  two  stories  in  height,  and  about 
three  hundred  feet  in  length.  There  is  nothing  very 
striking  or  warlike  in  its  appearance,  but  a  quiet, 
comfortable  outpost.  There  are  at  present  eight 
companies  quartered  at  this  point,  four  of  which 
are  awaiting  marching  orders  for  Fort  Pierre,  on 
the  Missouri  River.  About  seventy  military  tents 
dot  the  prairie  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  fort,  and, 
with  that  display  and  bustle  incidental  to  military 
life,  present  a  novel  and  interesting  sight. 

"  Heartily  tired  of  horse  locomotion,  we  reached 
the  lower  Sioux  Agency  on  Saturday  evening,  a 
distance  of  ninety  miles  from  Shakopee  City,  on  the 
Minnesota  River.  There  is  at  this  point  several 
Indian  trading  posts,  which,  by  order  of  the 
Government,  are  kept  in  operation  the  entire  year. 
It  is  also  the  place  of  residence  of  the  Indian  far- 
mer and  physician  ;  about  ten  white  people  include 
the  whole  population.  A  terrific  hail-storm  visited 
this  place  a  few  days  before  our  arrival,  which  de- 
stroyed about  two  hundred  acres  of  corn,  planted 
by  the  Sioux ;  thus  cutting  off,  in  a  great  measure, 
their  means  of  support.  The  inhabitants  averred 
that  hail  fell  as  large  as  eggs ;  and,  although  several 
days  had  elapsed  since  the  storm,  we  saw  indenta- 
tions in  the  earth  which  led  us  to  believe  that  the 
report  was  correct. 

"  While  at  the  Agency,  we  were  the  guest  of  the 
resident  physician,  Dr.  Daniels,  to  whom  we  are 
indebted  for  many  kind  attentions.    The  ladies 

5 


50 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


composing  the  household  were  refined  and  court- 
eous, and  we  shall  long  remember  with  pleasure 
our  Sabbath  at  the  Agency. 

"  We  noticed,  on  the  route  from  the  Agency  to 
Red  Wood,  a  large  number  of  neat-looking  log 
houses,  and  evident  signs  of  agricultural  improve- 
ment, which  we  learnt  are  the  work  of f  ShakopeeV 
and  4  Little  Crow's '  band.  The  Indian  is  slowly 
beginning  to  realize  the  fact,  that  it  is  far  better  to 
turn  his  attention  to  the  cultivation  of  the  earth 
than  to  rely  upon  the  uncertainties  of  the  chase 
for  a  subsistence ;  and,  although  it  is  hard  for  them 
to  overcome  their  prejudices,  and  their  natural  an- 
tipathy of  imitation  of  the  whites,  there  is  a  decided 
progressive  spirit  perceptible,  which  argues  well  for 
a  better  state  of  things  than  have  heretofore  existed 
among  them. 

Yellow  Medicine,  or  Upper  Sioux  Agency,  is 
situated  in  a  wild,  romantic  spot,  in  a  valley 
through  which  a  rivulet  dashes  along  a  narrow, 
rocky  defile,  associated  with  many  a  wild  tale  and 
stirring  legend  of  Indian  life,  which  needs  but  the 
inspiration  of  the  scene,  and  the  pen  of  the  novel- 
ist, to  weave  into  story.  We  fancied  it  was  such 
a  spot  as  this,  and  such  scenes  as  this,  that  in- 
spired the  pen  of  Campbell,  that  gave  to  the  world 
his  jpoem  of  '  Gertrude  of  Wyoming.' 

"A  convocation  of  the  principal  chiefs  of  the 
bands  in  attendance  was  held  at  the  office  of  the 
agent,  R.  G.  Murphy,  the  morning  after  our  arrival. 


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51 


They  represented  themselves  as  being  in  an  extreme 
destitute  condition ;  but  their  demands  for  provi- 
sions and  pay  met  with  a  firm  and  decided  refusal 
from  the  agent,  who  informed  them  that  none 
would  be  issued  until  the  party  who  were  engaged 
in  the  Chippewa  murders  were  given  up  for  pun- 
ishment. Fourteen  of  these  Indians,  belonging  to 
various  bands  of  the  Sioux,  are  now  in  custody  at 
Fort  Ridgely,  and  the  remaining  offenders,  two  in 
number,  will  probably  be  delivered  up  by  the  tribe, 
after  which  the  payment  will  immediately  take 
place.  The  prompt  action  of  the  superintendent 
and  agent  in  regard  to  this  matter  will  have  a  good 
effect  in  restraining  the  Sioux  from  hereafter  wag- 
ing war  against  the  Chippewas. 

"  We  looked  in  vain  for  that  proud,  haughty 
bearing  that  we  had  been  led  to  suppose  existed 
among  them  in  their  councils.  Their  spirits  seem 
to  be  crushed,  and  there  is  a  tame  submissiveness 
manifest,  which  but  ill  accords  with  the  wild,  un- 
tamable spirit  with  which  writers  have  invested 
them.  Once  only,  when  the  agent  severely  repri- 
manded them  for  their  warlike  disposition,  one  old 
chieftain  arose,  and  something  like  4  the  pride  of 
former  days'  seemed  to  animate  him  as  he  replied 
haughtily,  and  with  emphatic  gestures,  that  4  he 
had  fought  his  enemies  from  his  boyhood,  and  he 
had  killed  a  large  number  of  them,  and  he  intended 
to  kill  a  great  many  more  before  he  died.'  Observ- 
ing the  agent  gazing  on  his  bared  and  swarthy 


52 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


body,  he  exclaimed  bitterly,  6  You  look  at  me  as 
if  you  think  I  was  poor :  I  am.  You  would  be, 
too,  if  you  had  not  tasted  food  for  three  days,  as  I 
have  not' 

"  A  chief  from  the  Sissitons  represented  to'  the 
agent,  that  it  was  impossible  for  his  band  to  attend 
the  payment,  unless  provisions  were  forwarded  to 
aid  them  on  their  journey,  as  then  women  and  chil- 
dren were  weak  and  famishing  for  want  of  food, 
and  unable  to  endure  the  hardships  of  the  travel. 
The  agent,  with  commendable  promptness,  imme- 
diately dispatched  the  necessary  articles  to  meet 
them  on  their  route. 

"  Heartily  sick  and  tired  of  the  misery  and  de- 
gradation that  we  saw  existing  among  them,  we 
gladly,  next  morning,  took  our  way  homeward, 
without  witnessing  the  payment,  which  was  to 
occur  about  the  1st  of  August.'' 

English  Travellers'  Opinions  of  this  Val- 
ley.—  I  can  close  my  description  of  the  valley  of 
the  Minnesota  in  no  better  words  than  those  fur- 
nished in  the  reports  of  an  English  traveller,  of 
great  renown,  named  Carver,  who  visited  this  val- 
ley in  1766.  He  speaks  of  the  Minnesota  as  flow- 
ing u  through  a  most  delightful  country,  abounding 
with  all  the  necessaries  of  life,  that  grow  sponta- 
neously. Wild  rice  grows  here  in  great  abundance ; 
and  every  part  is  filled  with  trees,  bending  under 
their  loads  of  fruit,  such  as  plums,  grapes,  and 


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53 


apples.  The  meadows  are  covered  with  hops,  and 
many  sorts  of  vegetables,  while  the  ground  is 
stored  with  useful  roots — with  angelica,  spikenard, 
and  ground-nuts  as  large  as  hens'  eggs."  He  also 
speaks  of  a  "milk-white  clay"  abounding  near  the 
south  bend,  on  the  Blue  Earth,  "out  of  which 
chinaware  might  be  made,  equal  in  goodness  to  the 
Asiatic ; "  and  also  of  "  a  blue  clay,  which  serves 
the  Indians  for  paint." 

Seventy  years  later,  in  1835,  G.  W.  Featherston- 
haugh,  F.  R.  S.,  a  distinguished  geologist,  ascended 
the  Minnesota,  on  an  exploring  tour,  and  de- 
scribes the  country  about  the  mouth  of  the  Blue 
Earth  as  "extremely  beautiful;  the  prairie  occa- 
sionally coming  down  to  the  waters'  edge,  while,  at 
other  times,  bold  bluffs  arise,  with  well-wooded 
slopes,  interspersed  with  graceful  clumps  of  trees." 
Again,  he  speaks  of  the  "  charming  slopes,  with 
pretty  dells  intersecting  them,  studded  with  trees 
as  gracefully  as  if  they  had  been  planted  with  the 
most  refined  taste,  backed  by  thousands  of  well- 
formed  trees,  —  thousands  of  acres  of  the  most  fer- 
tile land,  with  the  river  in  front,  and  a  world  of 
prairie  in  the  rear." 

5* 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE   FALLS   OF   ST.  ANTHONY. 

Minneapolis,  county-seat  of  Hennepin  county, 
and  St.  Anthony  (now  in  the  same  county),  are 
situated  upon  the  Mississippi  River,  fifteen  miles 
above  St.  Paul  by  the  river,  and  nine  miles  by 
land.  At  this  point  are  the  Fails  of  St.  Anthony, 
the  first  impassable  obstruction  to  the  navigation 
of  the  Mississippi  above  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 
Between  these  cities,  but  nearer  the  eastern  shore, 
are  three  islands  which  divide  the  river,  the  princi- 
pal portion  of  the  water  passing  on  the  Minneapo- 
lis or  western  side  of  the  islands.  Here  the  river 
falls  seventeen  feet  perpendicularly,  over  a  lime- 
stone rock.  These  fails  have  been  a  point  of 
attraction  for  years  past,  and  will  ever  continue  to 
be.  The  number  of  visitors  will  annually  increase, 
just  in  proportion  as  the  beauty  and  magnificence 
of  the  scenery  on  the  upper  Mississippi,  and  the 
grandeur  of  these  cataracts,  "  the  crowning  glory 
of  the  northwest,"  are  made  known  to  the  admirers 
of  nature's  works  in  the  East  and  the  sunny  South. 
As  early  as  1680,  Louis  Hennepin,  a  French  Recol- 
let  Friar,  a  missionary  and  North  American  ex- 

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MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


55 


plorer,  "  gave  to  the  foaming  waters  of  St.  An- 
thony's Falls  their  baptismal  name,  in  honor  of  his 
patron  saint." 

By  the  Bahcotah  or  Sioux  Indians,  these  falls 
are  called  Minnehaha  (laughing  water),  and  also 
Minne-o-wah  (falling  water).  By  the  Ojibways 
they  arc  called  Kaboh-Bikah  (the  broken  rocks). 
The  former  name,  Minnehaha,  is  now  only  applied 
to  the  beautiful  little  falls  between  Minneapolis 
and  Fort  Snelling. 

The  Falls  of  St.  Anthony  are  at  present  seven 
miles  from  the  mouth  of  the  Minnesota  River. 
"  It  is,  however,"  says  Owen,  United  States  geolo- 
gist, "  more  than  probable  that  they  once  occupied 
a  position  at  or  near  Fort  Snelling."  Of  course, 
little  evidence  can  be  gathered  of  the  rate  of  wear- 
ing, from  actual  observation  of  the  inhabitants 
recently  settled  there ;  but,  judging  from  the  con- 
dition of  the  strata  themselves,  there  must  have 
been  a  retrocession.  The  cement,  which  holds 
together  the  particles  of  the  St.  Peter's  sandstone, 
is  so  slight,  that  it  is  with  difficulty  a  solid  specimen 
can  be  obtained.  Yet  this  rock,  with  a  covering 
of  only  fifteen  or  twenty  feet  of  schistose  lime- 
stone, to  protect  it  from  the  swift  current  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi, forms  the  base  of  the  falls.  The  confused 
heaps  of  disjointed  masses  of  limestone,  piled 
together  below  the  falls,  indicate  the  undermining 
action  in  progress.  The  inclined  position,  too,  of 
the  ledges  of  limestone  there,  for  several  hundred 


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MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


yards  above  the  chute,  contrary  to  the  local  dip, 
has  mostly  been  produced  by  the  water  which 
sweeps  over  them,  entering  the  extensive  rents 
which  run  across  the  strata  at  this  place,  gradually 
washing  out  the  particles  of  sand  upon  which 
these  ledges  repose ;  thus  allowing  them  gradually 
to  sink,  and  causing  huge  blocks  to  become,  from 
time  to  time,  detached  and  precipitated  into  the 
rapids  beneath.  In  this  way,  the  fall  will,  probably, 
after  a  lapse  of  time,  be  converted  into  a  rapid. 
For,  in  proportion  as  the  fall  shall  recede,  the  sand- 
stone, by  reason  of  its  dip,  will  diminish  in  thick- 
ness in  the  gorge,  and  at  length  disappear  beneath 
the  river  bed.  From  observations  of  the  dip  at  the 
falls,  this  latter  contingency  will  occur  when  the 
fall  has  been  worn  back  some  six  or  seven  miles 
from  its  present  position. 

The  falls  in  the  main  channel  are  several  rods 
above  those  in  the  eastern,  the  great  volume  of 
water  having  worn  away  the  soft,  crumbling  rock 
much  faster.  The  falls  are  at  present  seven  miles 
from  the  mouth  of  the  Minnesota,  at  Fort  Snelling. 
An  early  voyager  represents  the  tfalls  as  having 
been  sixty  feet  in  height ;  but  I  have  been  able  to 
find  no  point  between  Fort  Snelling  and  the  pres- 
ent fall,  where  the  geological  formation  warrants 
this  conclusion :  they  are  now  but  seventeen  feet  in 
height.  However,  Professor  Owen  mentions  the 
discovery  of  a  bed  of  drift,  eleven  feet  in  thickness, 
overlaying  the  limestone  at  the  falls,  extending  half 


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57 


a  mile  below  and  east  of  the  gorge.  This  forma- 
tion is  such  as  to  warrant  the  conclusion  that  a 
lake  once  existed  here,  and  that  its  outlet  was  a 
fall,  much  higher  than  the  present,  at  or  near  Fort 
Snelling. 

The  last  dislodgment  of  rock  in  the  bed  of  the 
^alls,  occurred  on  the  5th  of  July  last,  when  a  large 
mass,  fifteen  feet  wide  and  a  hundred  feet  long, 
gave  way,  removing  the  fall  up  the  stream,  on  the 
Minneapolis  side,  fourteen  feet. 

Minnehaha  Falls,  a  point  of  considerable  note, 
and  now  becoming  a  place  of  resort,  should  not 
pass  unnoticed.  A  Minnesota  editor  thus  speaks 
of  them : 

"This  name,  Minne-ha-ha,  signifying  laughing 
water,  is  given  by  the  Dacotah  Indians  to  a  beau- 
tiful waterfall  between  Fort  Snelling  and  St.  An- 
thony's Falls.  It  is  a  favorite  custom  with  the 
citizens  of  St.  Paul,  and  of  strangers  visiting  that 
locality,  to  drive  to  Fort  Snelling,  and  from  thence 
to  St.  Anthony's  Falls,  taking  Minne-ha-ha  in  their 
way,  and  to  return  by  a  shorter  and  more  direct 
route. 

"  Fort  Snelling  is  situated  upon  a  bluff,  at  the 
point  where  the  Minnesota  River  empties  into  the 
Mississippi,  about  seven  miles  distant  from  St. 
Paul.  Having  crossed  the  river  in  a  boat,  and 
wound  around  the  base  of  the  bluff,  you  ascend  to 
the  plateau,  on  which  stands  the  fort.    Here  you 


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MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


see  stretching  out  before  you  an  extensive  prairie, 
with  some  rolling  ground  lying  on  the  right  hand, 
toward  the  upper  Mississippi.  In  the  course  of  a 
pleasant  drive  across  the  prairie,  the  excursionist 
comes  suddenly  upon  a  stream,  about  three  rods 
wide,  which  glides  quietly  but  rather  swiftly  along, 
the  banks  of  which  are  skirted  by  a  few  bushes 
and  small  trees. 

"  The  stranger  would  proceed  on  his  route,  and 
cross  the  stream,  without  suspecting  the  proximity 
of  the  falls  of  Minne-ha-ha ;  but  those  acquainted 
with  the  locality  seek  a  point  below  the  crossing, 
tie  up  their  teams  to  one  of  the  small  trees,  and, 
after  a  few  rods  into  the  sparse  timber,  find  them- 
selves upon  the  banks  of  a  deep  ravine,  into  which 
the  miniature  river  enters  by  a  downright  plunge 
of  fifty  feet,  and  then  runs  away  in  a  quiet  manner, 
as  if  stunned  by  the  fall  from  the  prairies  above. 
Clambering  down  the  bank  by  the  aid  of  projecting 
roots  and  shrubs,  you  approach  the  fall  of  the 
Laughing  Water,  which  whitens  into  foam  as  it 
descends,  and  drives  up  a  cloud  of  spray  from  the 
pool  below.  The  water  is  poured  over  a  shelf  of 
rock  in  semi-circular  form,  as  regularly  shaped  as 
if  fashioned  by  a  Yankee  mechanic,  and  under  this 
shelf  visitors  pass  behind  the  fall  around  to  the 
opposite  side,  dry-shod.  A  neater  waterfall  than 
this  could  not  be  whittled  out  with  the  jack-knife  ; 
and  this  is  the  Minne-ha-ha — Laughing  Water — 


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59 


after  which  Mr.  Longfellow  has  named  the  in- 
teresting squaw  described  in  his  story  of  Hiawatha." 

By  the  table  of  contents,  find  "  The  Sight-seer's 
Diurnal  Drive,"  in  another  chapter,  where  full 
directions  for  visiting  Minne-ha-ha  are  given. 


CHAPTER  X. 


ST.    ANTHONY    AND    MINNEAPOLIS.  —  THEIR  ADVAN- 
TAGEOUS POSITION,  BUSINESS  STATISTICS,  ETC. 

From  the  year  1849  may  be  dated  the  com- 
mencement of  St.  Anthony,  though  one  cabin  had 
stood  here  for  twelve  years  previous.  The  present 
population  of  the  place  is  about  3500.  The  lum- 
bering business  is  at  present  the  great  manufac- 
turing interest  of  St.  Anthony.  Eight  saws  are  in 
constant  operation,  capable  of  manufacturing  twelve 
million  feet  of  lumber  per  annum ;  in  addition  to 
which,  another  gang  of  saws  have  recently  been 
put  in  operation,  which  will  probably  cut  five  million 
feet  per  annum.  This  mill  is  located  on  the  dam 
leading  from  the  main  shore  to  Hennepin  Island. 
To  this  dam  are  sixteen  apertures  for  mills,  nine  of 
which  are  now  occupied.  It  is  expected  that  more 
mills  will  be  erected  next  season,  and  all  the  aper- 
tures will  be  filled  at  as  early  a  day  as  possible. 
Ten  million  feet  of  logs  can  be  packed  in  the  dam. 
The  proprietors  will  enlarge  the  dam  another  season, 
by  extending  it  out  into  the  river  from  the  upper 
end  of  Hennepin  Island,  so  as  to  increase  the 

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MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK.  G1 

water  power,  and  soino  live  million  feet  more  of 
logs. 

in  addition  to  the  above  is  a  shingle  and  lath 
machine,  which  saws  thirteen  thousand  shingles 
and  twenty  thousand  laths  per  day. 

The  admirable  situation  of  St.  Anthony  for  manu- 
facturing purposes  is  the  first  idea  that  strikes  the 
mind,  as  one  surveys  its  location.  Situated  on  the 
great  "  Father  of  Waters,"  whose  supply  never  fails; 
the  banks  (above  the  cataract)  almost  level  with  the 
water;  a  descent  of  some  sixty  feet  within  a  mile ; 
the  channel  conveniently  divided  by  islands,  easy 
of  access,  and  affording  unequalled  facilities  for  the 
economical  use  of  water  power,  both  banks  being 
capable  of  being  sluiced  for  a  mill,  and  the  water 
used  to  an  unlimited  extent ;  abundance  of  stone 
at  hand  suitable*  for  the  erection  of  manufacturing 
edifices  —  all  these  form  a  combination  of  advan- 
tages seldom  found  in  one  locality.  Add  to  this 
that  it  is  at  the  head  of  navigation  on  the  Missis- 
sippi, surrounded  by  an  agricultural  district  which 
is  excelled  by  none  in  the  Union,  which  produces 
in  rich  luxuriance  all  the  cereals,  is  admirably 
adapted  to  fruit,  and  unsurpassed  for  grazing,  and 
you  have  all  the  elements  to  constitute  a  great 
manufacturing  metropolis.  The  location  of  St. 
Anthony  is  also  exceedingly  favorable  for  control- 
ling a  large  amount  of  country  trade.  The  county 
of  Hennepin,  and  all  the  north  part  of  Ramsey 
and  Benton  counties,  are  natural  auxiliaries  and 

6 


62 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


tributaries  of  this  place.  The  capital  invested  in 
business  in  St.  Anthony  is  as  follows  :  banking, 
$150,000;  merchandizing,  $280,000;  manufactur- 
ing, $125,000 ;  livery,  $15,000 ;  saloons,  $100,000. 

Minneapolis  is  beautifully  situated  on  the  west 
bank  of  the  Mississippi,  directly  opposite  to  the 
City  of  St.  Anthony.  The  bank  of  the  river  above 
the  falls  is  low,  rising  in  uneven  bluffs  from  five  to 
twenty-five  feet,  gradually  ascending  for  about  a 
hundred  rods  back  from  the  stream. 

The  name  is  an  Indian  and  Greek  compound, 
"  Minneha,"  being  the  Sioux  term  for  water,  and 
"polis,"  the  Greek  word  for  city  —  4>  City  of 
Water."  Colonel  J.  H.  Stevens  was  the  first  set- 
tler of  Minneapolis,  and  erected  his  dwelling  in  the 
winter  of  1849-50.  Speaking  of  his  early  resi- 
dence and  neighbors,  the  Colonel  says:  "We 
have  often  retired  at  night  and  opened  our  eyes  in 
the  morning  upon  the  wigwams  of  either  the  Sioux, 
Chippewa,  or  Winnebago,  which  had  gone  up 
while  we  slept." 

Minneapolis  is  located  on  what  was  formerly 
known  as  the  "  Military  Reserve  of  Fort  Snelling," 
a  reservation  of  nine  miles  square,  around  the  fort, 
for  the  purposes  of  forage ;  and  it  was  not  until  the 
5th  of  March,  1855,  that  Congress  passed  an  act 
granting  the  right  of  pre-emption  to  settlers,  so 
that  the  really  permanent  growth  of  Minneapolis 
has  all  taken  place  since  that  period.    The  present 


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63 


population  is  about  2000.  Amount  of  capital  em- 
ployed :  in  merchandizing,  $120,000 ;  in  manufac- 
turing, $60,000  ;  in  livery,  $10,000. 

The  suspension  bridge  between  St.  Anthony 
and  Minneapolis  is  worthy  of  notice.  As  a  work 
of  beauty  and  art,  it  can  hardly  be  surpassed, 
while  at  the  same  time  it  has  the  appearance  of 
great  durability  and  solidity ;  its  massive  cables 
being  firmly  anchored  on  either  side  in  the  solid 
rock.    The  work  was  undertaken  in  the  spring  of 

1854,  and  completed  about  1st  July,  1855.  The 
company  have  expended  something  over  $50,000 
on  this  work,  and  certainly  have  occasion  to  be 
proud  of  their  labors,  for  it  is  the  first  suspension 
bridge  ever  built  in  a  Territory,  and  the  first  to 
span  the  "  Fathers  of  Waters." 

Perhaps  nothing  more  forcibly  illustrates  the 
rapid  growth  of  the  population  around  the  falls 
than  the  increase  of  ferriage  and  tolls  at  the  bridge. 
In  1851,  Franklin  Steele  established  a  ferry  there, 
and  realized,  during  the  summer,  $300;  in  1852, 
$1,100 ;  in  1853,  $2,700 ;  in  1854,  $6,000 ;  and  in 

1855,  $12,000.  It  is  estimated  that  the  receipts  of 
the  present  year  will  not  be  less  than  $25,000. 

Those  desiring  information  about  this  place,  or 
of  the  surrounding  country,  cannot  do  better  than 
apply  to  Messrs.  Snyder  &  McFarlane,  land  agents, 
who  are  supplied  with  maps  and  other  important 
data,  which,  through  their  gentlemanly  politeness, 


64 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


are  tendered  to  those  who  may  visit  this  region  ir, 
quest  of  information.  * 

Colonel  Stevens,  the  first  settler,  who  has  watched 
the  rise  and  progress  of  this  place,  thus  speaks  of 
the  future  :  "  We  now  look  for  a  more  rapid  growth 
for  Minneapolis  than  has  characterized  any  other 
town  in  the  Territory.  Everything  indicates  that 
it  must,  at  some  day  not  far  distant,  become  one 
of  the  most  important  towns  in  the  Territory.  Its 
water  privileges  and  manufacturing  advantages 
are  unequalled.  It  is  surrounded  by  a  magnificent 
farming  country,  the  very  garden  of  Minnesota. 
It  has  been  settled  by  a  population,  which,  for 
energy,  education,  enterprise,  and  industry,  has 
nowhere  a  superior. 

"  Within  another  five  years,  and  when  two  or 
three  more  bridges  shall  have  spanned  the  Missis- 
sippi, we  look  to  see  Minneapolis  and  St.  Anthony 
united  under  one  corporation,  and  constituting  one 
great  city,  which  will  know  no  superior  northwest 
of  Chicago,  in  point  of  population,  enterprise,  and 
wealth."  * 

This  point  is  a  gem  of  a  place  —  the  centre  set 
of  nature's  brilliants,  around  which  she  has  placed 
Lakes  Calhoun,  Harriet,  Clear  Lake,  Minnetouka, 
and  that  bright  particular  gem,  Minne-ha-ha ! 

#  The  author  would  here  tender  his  thanks  to  Dr.  G.  H.  Keith, 
of  the  Minneapolis  House,  and  to  W.  A.  Hotchkiss,  Esq.,  editor  of 
the  N.  W.  Democrat,  for  items  of  importance,  and  special  favors 
tendered  him,  during  his  sojourn  with  them. 


CHAPTER  XI. 


THE   RIVER  MISSISSIPPI   ABOVE   THE  FALLS. 

The  description  of  country  extending  north  from 
Clinton,  Iowa,  is  found  again  above  the  Falls  of 
Si  Anthony.  There  is  no  charm  —  the  banks  are 
low,  the  large  rolling  prairies,  clothed  with  grass 
and  flowers,  extending  to  the  water's  edge,  inter- 
spersed here  and  there  with  small  groves,  or  oak 
openings.  Along  the  west  bank,  for  some  distance, 
a  dense  forest  extends  as  far  as  the  eye  can  reach, 
principally  of  maple,  elm,  cottonwood,  oak,  and 
hackberry ;  and  the  islands  that  occur  here  and 
there  in  the  channel  are  covered  with  a  heavy 
undergrowth,  or  with  trees  as  above  named.  The 
eminences  or  high  points  that  occur  along  in  the 
distance  are  crowned  with  a  heavy  growth  of  deep 
green  pine  trees. 

The  Mississippi  is  navigable  for  some  hundreds 
of  miles  above  the  falls,  and  boats  run  regularly  be- 
tween St.  Anthony  and  Sauk  Rapids.  Towns  and 
villages  are  springing  up,  and  growing  into  import- 
ance, each  the  centre  of  a  thickly-settled  agricul- 
tural district. 

Manomin,  a  new  town,  seven  miles  above  St. 

6*  (G5) 


66 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


Anthony,  contains  several  dwellings,  stores,  hotel, 
etc.,  and  an  excellent  saw-mill. 

Anoka  is  beautifully  situated,  at  the  mouth  of 
St.  Francis  or  Rum  River,  eighteen  miles  above 
the  falls.  A  dam,  saw  and  grist-mill,  have  been 
erected  here,  costing  $30,000  ;  and  numerous  other 
manufactories  are  under  contract.  With  the  very 
extensive  water-power,  an  abundance  of  pine  tim- 
ber, and  surrounded  by  a  fertile  farming  country, 
this  place  is  worthy  the  attention  of  those  wishing 
to  locate. 

At  Elk  River  there  will  be  a  flourishing  town  at 
no  distant  day.  A  good  water-power  has  already 
been  rendered  available,  and  the  soil  is  very  gen- 
erally being  subdued  by  active  and  intelligent  men, 
who  have  extended  their  operations  for  miles  up 
the  river. 

The  next  town  of  importance  is  Monticello,  sit- 
uated about  midway  between  St.  Anthony's  Falls 
and  Sauk  Rapids.  The  town  site  is  laid  out  on  a 
beautiful  sloping  prairie,  possessing  a  good  river 
landing.  Besides  the  steam  saw-mill,  sash  and 
door  factory,  etc.,  there  are  numerous  other  manu- 
factories in  course  of  erection.  An  island  lying 
upon  the  west  side,  about  one  third  of  the  way 
across,  would  render  this  point  a  feasible  one  for 
bridging,  there  being  but  one  water  pier  necessary. 
Monticello  is  the  county-seat  of  Wright  county, 
and  bids  fair  to  become  a  large  place*  Nearly 
every  claim  (one  hundred  and  sixty  acres),  for 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK, 


G7 


thirty  miles  west,  is  taken ;  and  why  should  n't  it 
be  ?  The  soil,  for  strength  and  richness,  is  scarcely 
excelled  in  the  Territory,  timber  and  prairie  being 
about  equally  divided. 

Humboldt  is  the  name  of  a  new  town  recently 
laid  out  by  Joseph  Brown,  Esq.,  and  is  the  county- 
seat  of  Sherburne  county.  The  location  of  this 
town  is  delightful,  being  immediately  upon  the 
shore  of  Big  Lake,  a  sheet  of  water  seldom  sur- 
passed for  beauty.  The  surrounding  country  is 
pleasant,  and  the  soil  is  rich  and  adapted  to  a  high 
grade  of  cultivation.  A  large  and  most  beautiful 
prairie,  two  and  a  half  miles  wide,  stretches  out 
magnificently  from  the  village  of  Humboldt  to  the 
Mississippi  River,  inclining  gracefully  the  whole  dis- 
tance, whereby  the  inhabitants  of  the  county-seat 
of  Sherburne  county  enjoy  a  charming  view  of 
Monticello,  which  is  located  immediately  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  river,  and  upon  a  prairie 
ascending  gradually  as  it  recedes  westwardly  for 
five  miles,  skirted  by  a  magnificent  forest. 

Benton  City,  at  the  head  of  steamboat  naviga- 
tion, is  a  new  and  pleasantly  situated  town,  one 
hundred  miles  above  the  falls  by  river,  and  seventy- 
four  by  land. 

St.  Cloud  City  is  situated  on  the  west  side  of 
the  river,  a  short  distance  below  the  mouth  of  Sauk 
River,  at  the  foot  of  the  rapids,  and  of  course  at 
the  head  of  steamboat  navigation.  It  is  the  county- 
seat  of  Stearns  county,  the  centre  or  crossing  of 


68 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


a  number  of  important  roads,  and  its  proprietors 
claim  for  this  town,  "  the  point  of  crossing  Missis- 
sippi for  the  Great  North  Pacific  Railroad  to 
Puget  Sound.  For  a  description  of  the  country  in 
the  rear  of  St.  Cloud,  through  which  the  railroad 
must  pass,  you  are  referred  to  Gov.  Stevens'  offi- 
cial report  to  Government,  of  his  survey  and 
exploring  expedition." 

The  Sauk  rapids  of  the  Mississippi,  the  first 
obstruction  above  St.  Anthony's  Falls,  extend 
about  a  mile  along  the  river,  and  will,  with  a  com- 
paratively small  expenditure  of  capital,  furnish  a 
very  extensive  water-power.  The  town  of  Sauk 
Rapids  is  situated  about  a  mile  above  St.  Cloud, 
and  directly  opposite  the  rapids  is  the  county-seat 
of  Benton  county,  which  contains  a  United  States 
land  office.  The  citizens  of  this  place,  upon  the 
authority  of  Mr.  Lander,  contend  that  upon  the 
fine  hard  granite  rock  of  these  rapids  is  the  best 
point  above  St.  Paul  for  the  Pacific  Railroad 
bridge.  This  town  is  well  located,  and  will  be- 
come one  of  importance. 

Four  miles  above  the  rapids  is  Watab,  an  old 
Indian  trading  fort,  which  is  not  destined  to  be 
much  larger  than  at  present.  Opposite  Watab, 
on  the  west  shore,  is  "  Watab  Prairie,"  a  beautiful 
and  fertile  piece  of  land.  Between  Watab  and 
Platte  River  the  land  is  nearly  all  prairie,  except 
along  the  banks  of  the  Little  Rock  and  Platte  Riv- 
ers.   Several  claims  have  recently  been  made,  and 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


69 


this  extensive  prairie  will  soon  be  well  settled  along 
either  bank  of  the  Mississippi. 

Along  the  Platte  River  are  some  of  the  best 
cultivated  farms  in  this  section.  What  is  known 
as  "  the  old  Depue  farm  "  is  one  of  the  finest  in 
Benton  county,  well  fenced,  well  stocked,  and  with 
as  large  a  barn  as  there  is  in  the  Territory.  Seven 
years  ago,  Mr.  Depue  and  wife  squatted  here,  with 
nothing  but  a  yoke  of  oxen,  a  wagon,  and  a  few 
articles  of  household  furniture.  With  persevering 
industry  and  economy,  they  have  secured  a  farm, 
which,  for  neatness  and  extent,  like  the  social  and 
hospitable  qualities  of  its  owners,  is  spoken  of  by 
all  travellers  passing  that  way.  Above  this,  from 
Coon  Creek  to  Fort  Ripley,  extends  an  almost  con- 
tinuous tamarisk  swamp,  coming  in  some  instan- 
ces to  the  river,  and  in  others  receding  several  miles 
back.  Where  the  swamp  extends  to  the  river,  the 
road  is  almost  impassable.  Here  are  the  first  pine 
trees  seen  on  the  Mississippi.  There  are  no  heavy 
bodies  of  pine  timber,  however,  until  you  have 
passed  some  distance  above  Crow  Wing. 

Three  miles  above  Swan  River  is  Little  Falls,  a 
beautiful  place,  with  an  extensive  water  power.  It 
has  a  fine  farming  country  all  around  it,  with  a 
good  rich  soil  to  work  upon.  A  saw-mill  was 
built  here  some  four  years  ago.  Its  original  pro- 
prietors were  officers  of  the  army  and  highly 
respectable  civilians  of  the  Territory. 

Four  miles  above,  ten  miles  from  Fort  Ripley,  is 


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MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


Belle  Prairie ;  and  well  does  it  deserve  the  name. 
Mr.  Ayer,  formerly  a  missionary  among  the  In- 
dians, settled  here  some  six  years  ago,  and  is  now 
surrounded  by  several  families.  He  first  com- 
menced the  opening  of  a  farm  and  the  erection  of 
buildings  for  a  manual  labor  school  for  half-breeds 
and  whites.  A  handsome  framed  school-house  and 
comfortable  dwellings  have  been  built,  and  the 
school  was  opened  some  four  years  ago. 

The  south  line  of  the  Fort  RipJey  military 
reserve  extends  down  to  within  about  one  mile  of 
Mr.  Ayers'.  Six  miles  further,  is  the  house  and 
farm  of  S.  B.  Olmstead.  Mr.  O.  has  a  fine  farm, 
under  good  cultivation,  with  a  large  comfortable 
house  and  barns.  He  is  the  contractor  to  the  fort 
for  the  supply  of  beef  and  hay,  besides  supplying 
the  officers  and  men  with  other  produce  of  his 
farm. 

On  the  west  side  of  the  river  is  Fort  Ripley, 
with  quarters,  barracks,  etc.,  all  built  of  wood, 
inclosed  on  three  sides  by  the  buildings,  and  on 
the  fourth  by  the  river,  a  quadrangular  piece  of 
ground,  of  about  three  acres,  beautifully  orna- 
mented. The  houses  of  the  officers,  built  facing 
each  other,  forming  two  right  angles  from  the  river, 
are  of  a  cottage  style,  with  a  wide  piazza,  and  are 
altogether  very  comfortable  and  convenient.  All 
the  buildings  are  kept  handsomely  painted,  the 
ground  neat  and  clean,  which  makes  the  fort  pre- 
sent, from  the  river,  a  very  pleasant  and  comforta- 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


71 


ble  appearance.  Nor  is  this  appearance  deceitful 
to  a  visitor  at  the  fort,  or  at  the  quarters  of  the 
officers. 

Seven  miles  above  the  fort  is  Crow  Wing,  a 
place  at  one  time  of  some  importance  in  the  In- 
dian trade,  but  now  nearly  all  its  business  has  been 
drawn  to  the  Indian  Agency,  seven  miles  west,  on 
the  Crow  Wing  River.  Crow  Wing  is  an  old  set- 
tlement, and  was  for  a  long  time  the  head-quarters 
for  the  small  outfits  into  the  Indian  country.  Liv- 
ing here  is  one  of  the  old  pioneers  of  the  northwest, 
Mr.  Allen  Morrison,  a  man  who,  through  a  long 
life,  has  seen  and  felt  the  trials  and  troubles  of  the 
frontier. 

The  Indian  trader  is  truly  the  pioneer  of  civiliza- 
tion. With  a  small  pack  of  goods  on  his  back,  he 
penetrates  into  the  wilds  and  forests  of  an  un- 
known Indian  country,  and  sees  with  a  quick  eye 
the  advantages  and  resources  of  it.  This  soon 
becomes  known,  and  following  in  his  trail  come, 
"  like  the  rushing  of  mighty  waters,"  the  hardy  and 
adventurous  white  settlers,  who,  with  eager  long- 
ing for  the  home  of  the  Indian,  cry  to  Congress  for 
its  purchase.  It  is  accomplished  ;  and  the  land  of 
the  Indians,  of  no  use  to  them  except  for  its  game, 
becomes  the  happy  home  of  civilized  white  men. 
But  what  becomes  of  the  trader  ?  His  occupation 
is  gone ;  old  age  has  come  upon  him,  and  he  is  per- 
haps living  in  some  obscure  place,  in  poverty  and 
neglect.     It  is  true,  almost  without  exception, 


72 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


that  the  small  traders  —  the  men  who  have  done 
the  work,  who  have  packed  eighty  pounds  of 
goods  upon  their  backs,  weeks  and  months  to- 
gether, trading  with  and  collecting  furs  from  the 
Indians  —  after  spending  the  best  years  of  their 
life  in  this  way,  are  as  poor  as  when  they  com- 
menced. This  is  in  part  owing  to  the  wasteful 
habits,  acquired  by  residence  among  the  Indians, 
but  more  to  a  system  of  policy  acted  upon  by  the 
larger  traders,  who,  like  Aaron's  rod,  swallow  up 
all  the  smaller  ones. 

Farther  up  the  Mississippi  River  the  white  set- 
tlements become  more  unfrequent.  By  a  treaty, 
concluded  in  February  of  last  year,  the  Chippewas 
have  ceded  all  their  lands  east  of  the  river,  with 
the  exception  of  certain  specified  reservations. 
The  new  purchase  is  "chiefly  valuable  for  its  pine 
lumber ;  and  will  be  brought  into  market  as  soon 
as  the  government  surveys  are  completed. 

The  name  Mississippi  is  of  Indian  origin ;  Sepe 
or  Sepim,  in  Algonquin,  signifying  river,  or  running 
water.  By  De  Soto,  the  river  was  called  St.  Louis, 
and  by  Count  Frontenac,  Colbert,  in  honor  of  M. 
Colbert,  French  minister  of  marine  at  the  time  of 
the  explorations  of  Joliet  and  Marquette.  The 
Indian  appellation,  however,  has  universally  ob- 
tained; although,  as  used  by  the  earlier  writers 
and  explorers,  the  orthography  of  the  term  was 
unfixed.* 

^For  numerous  items  of  history,  etc.,  in  this  chapter,  the  author 
returns  thanks  to  the  editor  of  the  St.  Paul  Democrat. 


CHAPTER  XII. 


THE  ST.  CROIX  RIVER  AND  SURROUNDING  COUNTRY.  

POINT  DOUGLAS,  AFTON,  HUDSON,  LAKELAND,  AR- 
COLA,  MARINE  MILLS,  TAYLOR^  FALLS,  AMIDON,  AND 
SUNRISE. 

In  the  St.  Croix  country  were  made  some  of  the 
earliest  settlements  in  Minnesota ;  and,  as  will  be 
seen  by  reference  to  the  chapter  on  the  lumber 
business,  this  district  is  one  of  the  most  important 
in  the  Territory.  The  reader  will  visit,  with  me, 
the  principal  points  on  the  St.  Croix. 

Point  Douglas  is  situated  in  the  angle  formed  by 
the  Mississippi  River  and  Lake  St.  Croix,  and  was 
surveyed  and  laid  out  as  a  town  in  1840.  The 
first  house  in  the  place  was  erected  in  1839.  It  is 
now  considerable  of  a  town,  but  not  improving 
very  rapidly.  Opposite  this  place,  on  the  Wiscon- 
sin shore,  is  Point  Prescott,  an  excellent  natural 
site  for  a  town,  with  good  landing  on  the  river,  and 
good  country  around.  Philander  Prescott,  Esq., 
the  first  white  settler  in  the  St.  Croix  valley,  built 
and  located  on  this  spot  in  the  year  1837.  Afton, 
a  new  town,  recently  staked  off,  has  a  fine  agricul- 
tural country  around  it,  and,  if  no  other  town  comes 

7  (73) 


74 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


in  its  way,  may  grow  to  be  a  large  village.  On 
either  shore,  as  we  pass  along,  the  lake  is  full  of 
logs,  either  floating  about  at  the  mercy  of  every 
wind  and  wave,  or  else  lying,  like  huge  alligators  in 
the  sun,  upon  the  shore.  Our  boat,  the  "  Granite 
State,"  Captain  Hurd,  had  some  difficulty  in  land- 
ing at  Hudson,  as  the  wind  upon  the  lake  was 
strong,  and  had  driven  thousands  of  logs  ashore. 

Hudson  (Wisconsin),  is  beautifully  located  on 
the  east  shore  of  St.  Croix  Lake,  twenty-two  miles 
above  its  confluence  with  the  Mississippi.  Popu- 
lation 1500.  It  is  St.  Croix  county-seat,  and  the 
location  of  the  United  States  land  office  for  the 
Hudson  (formerly  Willow  River)  land  district. 
The  village  has  doubled  its  population  within  the 
last  fifteen  months,  and  bids  fair  to  increase  in  the 
same  ratio  for  many  years  to  come.  It  is  easily 
accessible  by  any  of  the  steamboats  running  on 
the  upper  Mississippi.  Choice  farms  can  be  ob- 
tained in  the  immediate  neighborhood  of  the  village 
at  Government  prices.  Twelve  miles  back  choice 
locations  can  be  had  from  Government.  A  rail- 
road company  has  been  organized,  which  proposes 
to  build  a  road  from  Hudson  to  Superior  City,  at 
the  head  of  Lake  Superior,  —  a  distance,  according 
to  the  surveys,  of  one  hundred  and  thirty-three 
miles.* 

*  For  further  particulars,  see  the  Hudson  North  Star,  an  excellent 
newspaper. 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


75 


Lakeland,  in  Washington  county,  is  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  village  sites  in  the  St.  Croix  valley. 
It  is  situated  on  a  beautiful  level  plain,  above  high- 
water  mark,  on  the  west  bank  of  Lake  St.  Croix, 
nearly  opposite  the  village  of  Hudson.  It  has  but 
recently  been  surveyed  into  village  lots,  and  already 
contains  a  population  of  over  100.  It  is  surrounded 
by  a  country  unsurpassed  for  agricultural  purposes, 
and  rapidly  filling  up  with  an  industrious  farming 
community,  mills  and  manufactories  are  springing 
up,  and  mechanics  will  consider  themselves  invited 
to  call  and  examine  Lakeland. 

Stillwater,  first  settled  in  October,  1843,  is  now 
a  bustling,  thriving,  and  busy  city  of  several  hun- 
dred inhabitants.  It  is  situated  one  mile  below  the 
mouth  of  St.  Croix  River,  and  at  the  head  of  low- 
water  (for  large  steamers)  navigation.  Being  con- 
sidered as  a  central  and  important  point,  1  will 
mention  that  Stillwater  is  twenty-five  miles  above 
the  mouth  of  the  lake,  twenty-five  miles  below 
Taylor's  Falls,  twenty-five  east  of  St.  Anthony's 
Falls,  one  hundred  and  fifty  southwest  of  the  head 
of  Lake  Superior,  one  hundred  and  fifty  southwest 
of  Sauk  Rapids,  one  hundred  and  seventy  northeast 
of  South  Bend,  fifty  northwest  of  La  Crosse, 
eighteen  miles  east  by  land  and  fifty  by  water 
from  St.  Paul.  The  St.  Croix  Union  (a  Stillwater 
paper)  anticipates  that  this  point  will  be  on  the 
route  of  the  Madison  and  St.  Paul,  and  the  Du- 
buque, St.  Paul,  and  Superior  City  Railroads,  be- 


76 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


sides  being  the  terminus  of  a  road  from  Green  Bay. 
The  statistics  of  the  lumber  business  of  this  sec- 
tion are  given  in  another  chapter. 

Stillwater  is  the  centre  of  one  of  the  richest  farm- 
ing districts  in  the  Territory.  Many  fine  farms  are 
already  opened  and  cultivated,  yielding  a  rich  re- 
ward to  those  who  till  the  soil,  and  this  is  the  point 
from  which  the  greater  portion  of  the  supplies  for 
the  extensive  pine  region  on  the  St.  Croix,  and  its 
numerous  tributaries,  are  drawn  by  teams,  or  carried 
by  boats ;  and  we  know  of  no  business  which  pays 
better  than  that  of  farming.  At  present  the  home 
demand  far  exceeds  the  supply.  Choice  farms  can 
be  obtained  in  the  immediate  neighborhood  of 
Stillwater  at  from  $5  to  $30  per  acre,  and  some 
Government  land  can  yet  be  bought,  but  it  is  fif- 
teen or  twenty  miles  distant.  Land  situated  six 
miles  west  is  advertised  at  $6  per  acre.  City 
property  is  rather  higher,  in  proportion:  twenty- 
eight  and  a  half  acres  in  the  city  limits  recently 
sold  at  $150  an  acre,  and  $200  was  refused  by  the 
purchaser  the  same  day. 

Stillwater  is  the  county-seat  of  Washington 
county.  The  court-house  is  a  frame  building  of 
good  size.  The  Catholic,  Methodist,  Episcopalian 
and  Presbyterian  denominations  each  .have  com- 
fortable and  substantial  houses,  and  we  believe 
each  of  them  is  supplied  with  preaching  every 
Sabbath. 

Few  towns  anywhere  are  better  supplied  with 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


77 


good  and  wholesome  springs  than  is  Stillwater. 
Every  few  rods  may  be  seen  a  pure  spring  gashing 
from  the  hill-side,  and  dashing  onward  over  its 
gravelly  bed.  There  is  one  spring  here  which  we 
should  judge  would  fill  a  barrel  every  minute;  and 
no  drought  nor  season  seems  to  diminish  it  —  so 
we  are  reliably  informed. 

For  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  along  the  lake 
where  the  city  of  Stillwater  stands,  the  bluffs  have 
retreated  from  the  lake  in  the  form  of  a  semicircle. 
The  ground  along  the  lake  is  but  a  few  feet  above 
high-water  mark ;  and,  for  the  distance  of  two 
streets,  it  is  slightly  ascending,  until  the  bluffs  are 
reached,  which  are  about  one  hundred  feet  in 
height,  beyond  which  are  beautiful  oak  openings, 
and  excellent  farming  land. 

"  The  pineries  proper  are  from  fifty  to  one  hun- 
dred miles  north  of  us.  The  delta  south  of  Still- 
water, lying  between  Lake  St.  Croix  and  the  Mis- 
sissippi River,  is  as  rich  and  fertile  as  any  body  of 
land  of  like  dimensions  to  be  found  anywhere  in 
the  Union ;  indeed,  the  whole  of  Washington 
county  is  good  for  farming  purposes.  There  is 
just  now  one  drawback ;  and  that  is,  too  much  of 
it  is  owned  by  land-sharks  and  speculators.  They 
know  it  to  be  valuable,  and  that  it  is  continually 
rising  in  value,  and  they,  therefore,  hold  on  with  a 
vice-like  grasp ;  but  it  is  gradually  passing  out  of 
their  hands,  and  the  time  is  not  very  distant  when 
the  road  between  St.  Paul  and  Stillwater  will  be 


7* 


78 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


lined  on  either  side  with  large,  productive,  and  mag- 
nificent farms."  —  Union. 

From  Point  Douglas  to  Stillwater,  rolling  oak 
openings  and  level  prairies  characterize  the  valley 
of  the  St.  Croix.  Here  are  found  some  of  the 
finest  and  oldest  farms  in  the  Territory,  although 
in  places  there  is  a  scarcity  of  wood  and  water. 
From  Stillwater  to  Marine  Mills  the  appearance  of 
the  valley  continues  much  the  same.  Three  miles 
from  Stillwater  is  Boutwell's  settlement,  embracing 
some  dozen  farms,  in  a  high  state  of  cultivation. 
Situated  in  this  portion  of  the  valley  is  Cornelian 
Lake,  a  charming  sheet  of  water,  whose  edges  are 
paved  with  agates  and  with  cornelians,  colored  in 
all  the  shades  of  red,  from  a  bright  vermillion  to  a 
brown.  From  Marine  Mills  to  Taylor's  Falls,  the 
face  of  the  country  is  changed.  Here  the  prairies 
and  oak  openings  disappear,  and  a  belt  of  timber 
commences,  eighteen  miles  long  and  six  to  ten 
wide.  In  this  tract  are  scattered  numerous  lakes, 
the  largest  of  which  are  Marine,  Chisago,  and 
Green.  The  lakes  abound  in  fish,  and  the  woods 
in  deer  and  elk.  Two  settlements  of  Swedes  are 
located  in  this  section;  one  on  the  eastern  and 
northern  shore  of  Marine  Lake,  and  the  other 
between  Chisago  Lake  and  Taylor's  Falls.  The 
former  embraces  twenty-four  families,  the  latter  a 
hundred  ;  both  together  including  a  population  of 
some  700  persons,  mostly  engaged  in  agricultural 
pursuits. 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


79 


Areola,  seven  miles  above  Stillwater,  is  a  town 
of  probably  200  persons,  with  three  mills,  shops, 
stores,  etc. 

Marine  Mills,  six  miles  farther,  contains  a  mill 
and  numerous  dwellings.  The  lumber  and  logging 
business  of  this  place  is  estimated  to  be  $40,000 
annually.  This  settlement  was  commenced  in 
1838,  by  members  of  the  Marine  Lumber  Company. 

Taylor's  Falls,  twenty  miles  farther,  has  a  popu- 
lation of  300.  The  first  settlement  on  the  Minne- 
sota side  of  the  St.  Croix  was  made  here  in  1837, 
by  members  of  the  Northwestern  Lumber  Com- 
pany. This  is  now  the  most  important  point  above 
Stillwater,  and  the  commercial  centre  for  a  large 
lumbering  district.  This  is  at  the  head  of  naviga- 
tion even  for  small  steamers. 

Amidon,  a  town  recently  surveyed  and  laid  out, 
is  situated  nine  miles  above  Taylor's  Falls. 

Sunrise,  seventeen  miles  above  Taylor's  Falls, 
on  Sunrise  River,  is  a  small  agricultural  settlement, 
and  contains  two  taverns.  The  land  in  the  vicin- 
ity is  good,  and  on  Sunrise  River  are  water  powers 
that  may  be  easily  improved.  Near  this  point  is  a 
tract  of  white  pine,  the  first  that  is  visible  in  as- 
cending the  St.  Croix. 

Pokeguma,  twenty-five  miles  northwest  from 
Sunrise,  is  noted  as  an  old  Indian  missionary 
station. 

Lake  Superior  is  ninety-two  miles  from  Taylor's 
Falls  and  one  hundred  and  twenty  from  Stillwater. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 


THE  INTERIOR  OF  MINNESOTA,  WATERED  BY  THE 
TRIBUTARIES  OF  THE  MISSISSIPPI  AND  MISSOURI, 
AND  BY  NUMEROUS  LAKES.  THE  TOWNS  OF  FARI- 
BAULT, FARMINGTON,  LAKEVILLE,  POPLAR  GROVE, 
WATERFORD,  MENDOTA,  ROSE  MOUNT,  PILOT  KNOB, 
ROCHESTER,  CARMAN  FALLS,  ORONOCO,  PLEASANT 
GROVE,  CARIMONA,  HAMILTON,  CALEDONIA,  HOKAH, 

HOUSTON  CITY,  ODESSA,  AND  ELLIOTA.  THE  SOIL 

OF  SOUTHERN  MINNESOTA. 

The  valleys  of  the  Mississippi,  Minnesota,  and 
St.  Croix,  with  the  towns  in  each,  having  been  de- 
scribed at  as  great  length  as  the  limits  of  a  volume 
of  this  size  will  permit,  the  next  in  order,  to  be 
brought  before  the  reader,  is  the  Interior  of  Min- 
nesota Territory. 

From  Stillwater  via  St.  Anthony  to  the  mouth 
of  Redwood  River,  thence  south  to  the  Iowa  line 
(the  southern,  if  you  please),  thence  east  to  the 
Mississippi,  thence  up  the  river  to  the  place  of  be- 
ginning, you  travel  over  a  tract  of  land  second  to 
none  in  the  northwest,  in  point  of  fertility,  and 
which,  as  a  general  thing,  is  well  supplied  with 
timber  and  water.    This  Territory,  bounded  on  the 

(80) 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


81 


north  by  the  Minnesota  and  on  the  north  and  east 
by  the  Mississippi,  is  watered  by  the  Waraju, 
Wattonwon,  Chanjuskah,  Blue  Earth,  Tewapaden, 
Tankiyan,  Tewapadan  Psah,  Le  Seuer,  Tchan- 
kiute,  Owattanna,  Chanjushkah,  and  other  tributa- 
ries to  the  Minnesota.  Besides  all  these,  we  have 
the  Vermillion,  Cannon,  Zombra,  Winneiska, 
Hokah,  or  Root  River  (each  lying  within  the  Ter- 
ritory), the  Iowa,  Red  Cedar,  and  Des  Moines, 
also  having  their  sources  in  the  Territory,  and  pas- 
sing into  Iowa.  Independent  of  these  streams 
and  their  numerous  tributaries  are  a  great  many 
lakes,  small  and  great,  clear,  beautiful,  and  health- 
ful. The  borders  of  the  lakes  differ  as  greatly  in 
appearance  as  the  lakes  do  in  size.  Some  of  them 
are  surrounded  by  gentle  grassy  slopes,  with  oc- 
casional trees  scattered  along  them,  while  others 
are  bordered  by  extensive  marshes,  often  overrun 
by  the  cranberry  plant ;  again,  the  shores  of  some 
of  them  are  abrupt,  with  a  dense,  dark  forest  skirting 
and  overhanging  their  margins.  Their  beds  are 
generally  pebbly,  or  covered  with  small  boulders ; 
the  water  usually  sweet  and  clear.  Although  a 
great  number  of  lakes  are  shown  on  the  maps  of 
the  Territory,  but  a  very  faint  idea  can  be  obtained 
therefrom  of  their  number  and  location. 

Although  the  region  of  country  above  referred  to 
is  rapidly  filling  up,  there  are  as  yet  but  few  towns 
of  importance.  Nor  dare  I  say  which  are  now 
large  or  small,  as  the  largest  towns  in  the  interior 


82 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


are  less  than  a  year  old.  Immigrants  pour  in  by 
thousands,  and  where,  but  one  short  year  ago,  it 
was  an  unclaimed  waste,  cabins  of  settlers —  actual 
tillers  of  the  soil — men  who  came  for  the  purpose 
of  making  the  Territory  a  permanent  home,  and 
not  merely  for  the  purpose  of  securing  a  pre-emp- 
tion— now  arise  in  close  proximity  to  each  other, 
on  every  side,  as  far  as  the  power  of  vision  ex- 
tends. Fine  farms  are  being  opened  up,  and,  in 
another  year,  the  first  cabin  of  the  settler  will  have 
been  superseded  by  substantial  and  spacious  farm- 
houses. Each  of  these  districts  must  have  a  centre, 
and  that  centre  will  increase  in  population  and  im- 
portance in  the  same  ratio  as  the  surrounding 
country ;  hence  the  impossibility  of  judging  of  the 
size  of  towns  after  a  temporary  absence. 

To  describe  the  land  in  one  portion  of  southern 
Minnesota  is  to  describe  it  all.  Except  along  the 
the  bluffs  next  the  river,  or  on  the  higher  sandy 
divides  between  streams,  the  soil  is  very  similar. 

Faribault  is  pleasantly  situated  at  the  junction 
of  Straight  and  Cannon  Rivers,  and  is  skirted  on 
the  east  and  south  by  beautiful  groves  of  timber. 
General  Shields  states  that,  one  year  ago,  there 
were  but  three  buildings  ;  now  there  are  four  saw- 
mills in  town,  and  twenty  within  ten  miles.  For 
one  hundred  days  preceding  the  1st  of  June,  there 
had  been  erected  one  house  per  day.  A  Congrega- 
tional church,  with  about  thirty  members,  was  or- 
ganized here  in  May  last 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


83 


Farmington  is  situated  on  the  Vermillion  River, 
about  fifteen  miles  from  Hastings.  This  place  is 
rightly  named,  for  it  looks  like  a  village  of  farms. 
Good  soil,  good  water,  good  timber,  and  intelligent 
citizens  are  its  wealth. 

Lakeville  is  situated  on  the  Mendota  and  Big 
Sioux  road,  about  twenty-five  miles  from  Hastings. 
It  takes  its  name  from  one  of  the  loveliest  bodies 
of  water  in  the  West.  The  lake  forms  nearly 
a  circle,  with  a  hard  gravel  beach  throughout  its 
whole  circumference.  The  town  is  otherwise 
pleasantly  located.  Here  are  a  good  tavern,  stores, 
and  mechanic's  shops. 

Poplar  Grove  is  a  postal  station,  about  seventeen 
miles  from  Hastings,  near  the  Big  Woods.  There 
is  timber  in  abundance  and  good  farming  land. 

Waterford  and  Lewiston  are  situated  on  the  Can- 
non River,  and  boast  of  as  good  a  country  as  any 
of  their  neighbors. 

Mendota  is  at  the  junction  of  the  Minnesota  and 
Mississippi  Rivers.  Its  name  is  derived  from  the 
Sioux,  and  signifies  a  meeting  of  waters.  Boats 
of  the  larger  size  can  run  to  this  point  at  all  times 
of  the  year.  It  is  at  present  the  county-seat  of 
Dacotah  county.  From  Pilot  Knob,  back  of  Men- 
dota, a  view  may  be  obtained  of  the  country,  eight 
or  ten  miles  in  extent,  affording  one  of  the  most 
magnificent  scenes  in  the  Territory. 

Rose  Mount  is  a  new  post-office  station  just 
started  on  the  Mendota  and  Big  Sioux  road,  four- 


84 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK, 


teen  miles  from  Hastings;  J.  L.  Turpin,  P.  M.  Of 
the  prairie  on  which  the  station  is  situated  too 
much  cannot  be  said.  From  one  position  we  dis- 
covered twenty-one  houses,  where  six  months  ago 
not  more  than  two  or  three  could  be  seen. 

Rochester  is  situated  in  the  centre  of  Olmstead 
county,  at  the  great  falls  of  the  Zombro  River.  It 
is  on  the  stage  lines  between  Dubuque  and  St. 
Paul,  and  between  Winona,  St.  Peters,  and  Man- 
kato.  Possessing  a  healthy  location,  good  roads, 
fertile  soil,  and  extensive  water  power,  it  would, 
under  proper  influences,  succeed.  Town  proprietors 
should  know  that  a  dog-in-the-manger  policy  will 
retard  the  growth  of  a  place,  no  matter  what  its 
advantages  and  attractions  may  be. 

Cannon  Falls,  situated  on  a  branch  of  the  Can- 
non River,  is  growing  rapidly,  and  promises  to  be- 
come a  large  manufacturing  town.  There  is  an 
abundance  of  water  power,  and  the  best  of  soil  in 
every  direction.  A  bridge,  costing  $3000,  is  being 
built  over  the  Cannon  River,  between  this  place 
and  Hastings. 

Oronoco,  in  Olmstead  county,  is  a  brisk,  new 
town,  in  a  populous  and  rich  agricultural  district. 
The  advantages  claimed  for  this  place  are:  first, 
its  situation,  in  the  centre  of  an  excellent  country, 
on  the  main  thoroughfare  from  Dubuque  to  St. 
Paul,  also  on  an  air-line  from  Winona  to  Travese 
des  Sioux.  Second,  its  great  mill  privilege,  having 
a  water  power  limited  only  by  the  extent  of  im- 


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85 


provement.  And,  third,  the  title  is  beyond  a 
question.  Aside  from  these,  a  grist-mill,  saw-mill, 
plough  factory,  and  an  extensive  brick-yard  are  in 
successful  operation. 

Pleasant  Grove,  in  Olmstead  county,  is  appro- 
priately named,  and  will  become  an  agricultural 
centre,  but,  I  think,  never  a  large  town. 

Carimona,  on  the  south  branch  of  Root  River, 
the  county-seat  of  Fillmore  county,  is  supplied 
with  flouring  and  saw-mills,  good  water  power  5 
with  a  fertile  district  surrounding. 

Hamilton,  in  Fillmore  county,  is  on  the  middle 
branch  of  Root  River,  fifteen  miles  southwest  from 
Chatfield,  and  fifty  from  Winona,  the  nearest  river 
point.  Adjoining  this  village  on  the  east  is  a  body 
of  timber,  covering  an  area  of  about  ten  thousand 
acres.  In  the  village  are  two  fine  large  springs  of 
the  purest  cold  water,  supplying  a  stream  sufficient 
for  a  mill.  Here  is  also  a  water  privilege  of  four- 
teen feet  fall,  but  partially  employed.  There  are 
four  mills  (one  grist)  within  five  miles.  This  is  a 
beautiful  location,  and  is  settled  by  Eastern  people 
who  term  this  the  "  New  England  Village." 

Caledonia,  the  county-seat  of  Houston  county 
is  situated  upon  an  elevated  plateau  of  table  land, 
high  and  gently  rolling,  requiring  no  grading  at  all, 
and  affords  an  extensive  view  of  the  country  ad- 
joining ;  a  profile  of  which  would  exhibit  almost 
every  variety  of  feature,  and  yet  every  foot  of  it 
may  be  cultivated. 

8 


86 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


Fears  have  been  entertained,  by  persons  travel- 
ling through  northern  Iowa  and  southern  Minne- 
sota, that  it  would  be  next  to  impossible  to  find 
water  upon  the  elevated  sites,  so  desirable  for  resi- 
dences. Such  has  been  the  opinion  formed  of  the 
location  of  Caledonia.  A  gentleman  from  that 
place  informs  us  that  a  well  was  dug  by  Mr.  S. 
McPhail,  a  few  weeks  ago  ;  and,  coming  to  water 
at  a  depth  of  twenty  feet,  it  was  walled  up  the 
same  day  within  two  feet  of  the  top.  It  was 
noticed  that  the  quantity  of  water  running  in  con- 
tinued to  increase,  and,  on  the  following  morning, 
it  was  running  over,  when  it  was  found  impossible 
to  bail  it  out  fast  enough  to  enable  the  workmen 
to  finish  the  wall ! 

Hokah  is  situated  about  six  miles  from  Browns- 
ville, on  the  Root  River.  A  packet  is  probably 
running  between  this  point  and  the  Mississippi 
River.  The  Root  River  is  navigable  some  fifteen 
miles. 

Houston  City  is  about  fifteen  miles  from  the 
Mississippi,  on  Root  River,  and  is  said  to  be  a  good 
location  for  a  town.    I  did  not  visit  it. 

Chatfield,  in  Fillmore  county,  is  the  present 
location  of  the  United  States  land  office  of  the 
Root  River  district.  The  travel  through  and  busi- 
ness in  the  place,  together  with  its  natural  advan- 
tages, are  building  up  a  town  here  with  a  rapidity 
known  only  in  the  West. 

Oakland  and  Mantorville,  in  Dodge  county,  are 


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87 


beautifully  and  advantageously  located  towns,  and 
worthy  the  attention  of  new-comers. 

The  face  of  the  country  near  the  Mississippi  is 
somewhat  broken  and  uneven,  covered  with  good 
timber  for  farming  purposes,  and  irrigated  with 
springs  of  pure  soft  water,  gushing  from  the  hills, 
forming  brooks  which  are  literally  alive  with  the 
finest  trout.  The  soil  of  these  hills  has  proved  to 
be  well  adapted  to  winter  wheat,  and  the  valleys 
produce  heavy  crops  of  corn. 

Back  from  the  river  the  country  gradually  be- 
comes more  level,  and  the  western  half  of  the  river 
counties  is  composed  of  fine  rolling  prairie,  inter- 
spersed with  groves,  and  generally  well  watered. 
The  soil  of  these  prairies  equals  the  best  of  Illinois 
for  the  culture  of  corn,  and  far  excels  in  small 
grains.    Winter  wheat  is  considered  a  sure  crop. 

Odessa  is  situated  at  the  junction  of  Iowa  River 
and  the  boundary  line,  on  the  line  between  ranges 
10  and  11;  and  is  one  of  the  most  go-ahead 
places  in  southern  Minnesota.  The  place  is  quite 
new,  has  most  excellent  water  power,  and  is  a  good 
point  for  manufactories. 

I  but  speak  the  sentiments  of  every  visitor,  when 
I  say,  that  southern  Minnesota  has  lost  nothing  in 
my  estimation  by  an  enlarged  acquaintance.  It 
can  but  be  considered  as  a  certainty  that  nearly,  if 
not  quite,  all  of  the  towns  now  located  on  the  stage 
road  from  Dubuque  to  St.  Paul  will  soon  become 
important  central  points  of  business  for  the  large 


88 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


tracts  of  country  by  which  they  are  severally  sur- 
rounded. The  amount  of  freight  and  the  number 
of  passengers  now  being  carried  over  that  great 
thoroughfare  is  immense,  for  a  new  country,  and  is 
increasing  in  a  wonderful  ratio.  Rochester,  Pleas- 
ant Grove,  Jordan,  Fillmore,  Carimona,  Waukokee, 
and  Elliota,  on  the  Iowa  State  line,  can  each  share 
in  the  business  thus  afforded,  without  interfering 
with  the  prosperity  of  the  other.  With  direct 
communications  to  Eastern  markets,  manufacturing 
facilities,  and  locations  in  the  heart  of  one  of  the 
best  agricultural  countries  in  the  West,  their  future 
growth  is  not  a  matter  of  speculation,  but  a  fixed 
fact. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 


TRIP  FROM  WINONA  TO   SIOUX   CITY.  SOUTH  BEND 

AND  THE    COUNTRY  NORTH.  NEW  ULM,  GLENCOE 

HUTCHINSON,  CEDAR  CITY,  CAMDEN,  RAPID  WATER, 
FREMONT,  HIGH  ISLAND,  GRIMSHAW,  GREENWOOD, 
FOREST  CITY,  EXCELSIOR.  THE  COUNTRY  BE- 
TWEEN THE  UPPER  MISSISSIPPI  AND  THE  UPPER 
MINNESOTA. 

A  correspondent  of  the  Red  "Wing  Sentinel 
thus  speaks  of  his  tour  from  Red  Wing  to  Sioux 
City: 

"  Between  Owatonia  and  Verona,  on  the  Blue 
Earth,  the  country  is  fast  filling  up.  There  are 
Wilton,  on  the  Le  Sueur ;  Chambers'  Settlement 
in  the  Cobb ;  a  short  distance  from  thence,  a  set- 
tlement on  the  Minnesota  Lake,  township  104 
north,  range  25  west.  West  of  Minnesota  Lake, 
eight  miles,  on  Maple  River,  is  a  good  settlement 
(Fogg's).  From  thence  to  Verona,  in  township 
103  north,  range  27  west,  are  settlements,  with 
accessions  daily.  From  Verona  to  the  Iowa  State 
line,  where  the  Sioux  City  and  the  Mendota  mili- 
tary road  strikes  the  State  line,  between  ranges  32 
and  33  west,  a  distance  of  thirty  or  thirty-five 
8*  (89) 


90 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


miles,  are  various  settlements  —  Bigelow's,  five 
miles  from  Verona ;  Welter's,  Mead's,  Rogers',  and 
Baitts',  on  the  Chain  Lakes,  in  townships  101  and 
102  north,  ranges  29  and  30 ;  from  Baitts'  to  Tut- 
tle's,  or  Tuttle's  Lake,  12  miles ;  from  Tuttle's  to 
the  point  where  the  military  road  first  touches  the 
State  line,  six  miles  (from  this  point  the  military 
road  follows  the  State  line  to  35  west).  From 
Tuttle's  to  the  Des  Moines  River  is  about  twelve 
miles. 

"  The  road  from  Fort  Dodge  to  Fort  Ridgely 
passes  at  an  equal  distance  between  Tuttle's  and 
Des  Moines.  From  the  point  in  35  west,  where 
the  military  road  finally  leaves  the  State  line,  to  the 
country  in  and  about  Spirit  Lake,  a  distance  of 
about  ten  or  twelve  miles,  the  settlements  are  of 
recent  date,  but  with  the  prospect  of  a  heavy  addi- 
tion before  another  month.  From  Spirit  Lake, 
through  Dickson,  O'Brien,  and  Plymouth  counties, 
to  Sioux  City,  crossing  the  head  waters  of  Little 
Sioux,  thence  to  the  head  of  Floyd's  River  and 
down  that  stream,  a  good  road  can  be  had  through 
a  settled  country. 

"  At  Spirit  Lake  the  nearest  post-offices  are  Fort 
Dodge  and  Mankato  —  distance  about  seventy 
miles.  By  fall,  there  will  be  a  necessity  for  offices 
on  an  average  of  about  every  ten  miles.  We  need 
a  mail  route  from  Red  Wing,  via  Owatonia,  Mil- 
ton, and  Verona,  crossing  the  Des  Moines  at  some 
point  on  Spirit  Lake,  to  form  a  junction  therewith 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


91 


the  St.  Paul  and  Sioux  City  road.  Our  road  is 
more  practicable  than  the  military  road,  even  when 
$8,000  shall  have  been  spent  on  it. 

"  Emigration  is  approaching  the  Mississippi  from 
an  unusual  source.  Emigrants  landing  at  Sioux 
City  are  looking  for  land  on  the  Big  Sioux,  Floyd's, 
Des  Moines,  and  even  Blue  Earth  Rivers. 

"  The  country  west  of  the  Des  Moines,  on  and 
near  the  State  line,  is  well  watered  with  streams 
connecting  various  lakes.  The  land  is  rich,  and  in 
many  places  covered  with  a  beautiful  growth  of 
red  top  grass,  constituting  one  of  the  best  agricultu- 
ral and  stock-raising  countries  in  the  world.  The 
objection  is  a  scarcity  of  timber.  In  some  places 
there  is  a  sufficiency,  in  others  an  abundance ; 
but,  taking  the  country  broadcast,  there  is  a  defi- 
ciency, and  this  constitutes  the  only  objection. 

"  We  need  some  connection  with  the  country  on 
the  Missouri,  by  means  of  roads,  mail  routes,  etc. ; 
and,  when  this  is  done,  our  business  relations  will 
spring  up.  At  Sioux  City,  pine  lumber  is  $100 
per  thousand  feet;  shingles,  $15  per  thousand; 
cotton-wood  lumber,  $40  per  thousand  feet.  Some 
there  are  who  talk  of  steamboating  lumber  up  the 
Minnesota  as  far  as  practicable,  hauling  it  from 
thence  to  the  Jaques,  and  floating  it  down  to  Sioux 
City.  That  is  a  project !  A  railroad  is  just  the 
thing.  We  could  furnish  lumber,  and  that  coal.  A 
coal  bank  is  being  opened  at  Sergeant's  Bluffs, 
eight  miles  below  Sioux  City. 


92 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


"  At  present,  our  nearest  communication  with 
the  Missouri  will  be  by  way  of  Sioux  City,  on 
account  of  the  intervening  Indian  lands  between  it 
and  the  Big  Sioux  on  the  west  At  present,  they 
cannot  even  be  explored.  These  unceded  lands  are 
but  little  occupied  by  the  Indians,  but  one  evidence 
of  an  old  camp  being  seen  from  the  mouth  of  Big 
Sioux  to  the  Territorial  line.  Immigrants  are  even 
at  this  time  anxiously  waiting  at  Sioux  City,  in 
hopes  of  the  speedy  cession  of  these  lands. 

"  "We  are  directly  interested  in  extinguishing  the 
Indian  titles.  The  recent  appropriation  by  Con- 
gress for  the  road  from  Fort  Eidgely  to  the  South 
Pass  will  be  expended  in  vain,  if  the  country 
through  which  the  road  passes  is  not  thrown  open 
to  the  pioneer.  I  know  that  this  tract  is  said  to  be 
ivorthless,  but  a  peep  into  the  promised  lands  has  a 
tendency  to  render  those  sceptical  who  have  been 
thus  favored." 

Blue  Earth  City,  the  county-seat  of  Faribault 
county,  was  organized  in  February  last,  and  is 
located  upon  a  charming  plateau,  in  the  forks  of 
the  Blue  Earth  River.  Immigrants  are  already 
rapidly  settling  the  town  and  county. 

Garden  City,  on  the  Wattonwon,  is  a  new  town 
just  "  rounding  into  form."  It  is  situated  where  a 
town  is  much  wanted,  in  order  to  supply  the  rich 
agricultural  district  surrounding.  It  is  about  eight 
miles  south  of  South  Bend,  having  a  lovely  site, 
and  located  in  a  district  thickly  settled  by  the  very 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK, 


93 


best  class  of  people.  From  its  water  power  and 
other  advantages,  I  anticipate  a  large  town  here  at 
an  early  day. 

From  here,  we  pass  to  South  Bend,  another 
point  that  nature  has  doubtless  marked  out  for  a 
large  town.  Everything  seems  favorable,  except 
the  lack  of  capital  and  citizens.  This  section  —  the 
south  bend  of  the  Minnesota  and  the  Blue  Earth 
country  —  is  attracting  more  attention  from  all 
classes  of  settlers  and  capitalists  than  probably 
any  other  one  point  in  the  Territory. 

The  north  side  of  the  Minnesota  is  also  a  splen- 
did country,  studded  with  numerous  towns,  which 
are  worthy  of  note. 

New  Union,  the  county-seat  of  Brown  county,  is 
located  twenty-five  miles  above  St.  Peter,  and  one 
degree  farther  south  than  St.  Paul.  Within  a  year, 
nearly  two  hundred  families,  principally  German 
and  Swiss,  have  located  here.  The  "  German 
Land  Company"  are  the  original  proprietors  of 
this  region.  This  company  was  organized  some 
years  ago  at  Chicago,  and  is  here  operating  much 
upon  the  plan  of  the  "building  associations"  of 
large  cities.  This  place  is  ten  miles  below  Fort 
Ridgely,  embracing  a  beautiful  section  of  country ; 
and,  with  the  efforts  now  being  put  forth,  we  shall 
soon  see  "  the  wilderness  blossom  as  the  rose." 

Glencoe  is  the  county-seat  of  McLeod  county, 
and  is  located  at  the  edge  of  what  is  known  as 
u  the  great  northwest  prairie."    This  place  is  at- 


94 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


tracting  considerable  attention,  which  it  richly 
deserves.  Although  this  section  is  very  rapidly 
settling,  there  were  still  claims  to  be  made  on  eligi- 
ble and  desirable  sites,  within  a  few  miles  of  Glen- 
coe.  This  place  is  in  township  115,  range  21  west. 
High-Island  Lake,  seven  miles  distant,  is  a  beauti- 
ful sheet  of  water.  The  country  around  it,  as  well 
as  that  of  Lake  Adda,  twelve  miles  distant,  and 
that  near  the  Minnesota,  is  the  best  of  farming 
land. 

Hutchinson  is  the  name  of  the  new  town  located 
by  the  Hutchinson  family  —  Asa,  John,  and  Jud- 
son,  of  singing  notoriety  —  on  the  middle  fork  of 
Crow  River,  which  they  have  named  Hassan  River. 
This  place  is  seventeen  miles  northwest  of  Glen- 
coe,  surrounded  by  an  abundance  of  timber  and 
prairie,  and  supplied  with  good  water  power.  This 
will  be  one  of  the  largest  inland  towns  north  of 
the  Minnesota. 

Cedar  City  is  in  township  117,  range  29  west,  on 
the  bank  of  the  beautiful  Red  Cedar  Lake.  This 
place  is  thirty  miles  northwest  of  Glencoe.  The 
immigrant  will  here  find  hard-wood  timber  land 
and  beautiful  rolling  prairies,  waiting  to  be  claimed 
and  settled. 

Camden  is  situated  at  the  junction  of  Buffalo 
Creek  with  Hassan  River,  on  the  new  Territorial 
road  from  Lake  Minnetouka  to  Glencoe.  It  is 
distant  from  Glencoe  twelve  miles,  and  thirty  from 
St.  Anthony. 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


95 


Rapid  Water  is  on  the  south  fork  of  Crow 
River,  in  section  4,  township  117,  range  25  west. 

Fremont  is  situated  in  section  28,  township  117 
range  28,  on  that  charming  lakelet,  Silver  Lake. 
This  town  is  new,  thrifty,  and  inviting. 

High  Island  is  on  a  lake  of  the  same  name,  eight 
miles  south  of  Glencoe,  near  the  border  of  and 
within  Sibley  county. 

Grimshaw  Settlement,  on  Lake  Adda,  in  sec- 
tion 21,  township  115,  range  29,  is  twelve  miles 
west  of  Glencoe. 

Greenwood  is  situated  at  the  forks  of  Crow 
River,  in  sections  30  and  31,  township  119,  range 
24,  distant*  from  St.  Paul  thirty  miles,  and  from 
Shakopee  twenty-three  miles.  This  site  is  a  ver- 
dant spot,  selected  by  an  old  Indian  trader  of  keen 
perception,  good  judgment,  and  an  experience  of 
years  in  the  Territory.  Nothing  but  mechanics 
and  capital  are  needed  to  make  this  a  first-class 
town.  The  legislature,  at  its  last  session,  incorpo- 
rated this  place  as  a  city  !  To  give  some  idea  of 
the  growth  of  this  country,  I  will  state  that,  one 
year  ago,  Mr.  Allen,  one  of  the  proprietors  of 
Greenwood,  came  through  from  Lake  Minne- 
touka,  and  u  blazed  his  way  "  with  a  butcher  knife. 
On  this  trail  there  is  now  a  Territorial  road,  and 
every  claim  on  it  is  taken.  On  almost  every  one 
is  a  comfortable  log  cabin,  and  on  some  of  them 
neat-looking  framed  houses  are  being  built.  Then 
there  was  no  road  coming  here.    Now  territorial 


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MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


roads  are  located  from  Shakopee  and  Minneapolis, 
and  others  are  legalized  from  Monticello,  Anoka, 
and  Forest  City. 

Then  one  hastily  built  cabin  was  all  that  there 
was  of  this  now  flourishing  village  —  city,  I  should 
say! 

Forest  City  is  situated  in  a  central  point,  at  the 
foot  of  the  rapids  on  the  north  fork  of  Crow  River, 
the  best  water  power  to  be  found  on  the  waters  of 
that  extensive  stream,  draining,  as  it  does,  a  large 
region  of  country,  comprising  the  richest  prairies 
and  timbered  districts  Minnesota  can  boast  of. 
The  people  of  Monticello,  Clearwater,  and  St. 
Cloud  are  now  briskly  employed  in  reaching  this 
fertile  centre  of  farming  lands,  and  seem  to  be 
engaged  in  a  laudable  emulation  to  see  who  can 
do  most  to  help  the  industrious  immigrant  to  this 
inland  paradise.  The  county  commissioners  met 
on  the  first  Monday  of  May,  and  organized  the 
county,  pursuant  to  law,  by  the  appointment  of  a 
sheriff,  register  of  deeds,  etc.,  whilst  the  company 
are  engaged  in  building  a  saw-mill,  hotel,  and  other 
public  conveniences. 

The  farmer  or  immigrant  can  hardly  go  amiss 
anywhere  in  this  section,  between  the  Upper  Mis- 
sissippi and  the  Upper  Minnesota.  The  last  legis- 
lature appointed  commissioners  to  establish  roads 
to  Forest  City  from  Minneapolis,  from  Shakopee, 
via  Greenwood,  from  Monticello,  and  from  St. 
Cloud. 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


97 


Excelsior  has  recently  been  staked  off,  and  the 
town  site  was  entered  in  May  last,  situated  on 
sections  27,  34,  and  35,  in  township  117,  range  23. 

These  towns  are  all  beautifully  and  advantage- 
ously situated  in  a  fertile  section  of  country.  That 
immigrants  may  the  more  readily  find  the  loca- 
tions, while  travelling  over  the  country,  I  have 
given  the  section,  township,  and  range  of  the  smaller 
towns ;  for  some  of  them,  though  large  and  popu- 
lous, are  not  shown  upon  the  map,  so  recent  has 
been  their  organization  and  so  rapid  their  growth. 

9 


CHAPTER  XV. 


LIFE   IN  THE  WEST.  EASTERN  ERRORS  CORRECTED. 

 WESTERN   MEN.  HOW    WESTERN    CITIES  ARE 

MADE.  GROWTH  OF  THE  WEST.  —  "  OVERWROUGHT 

REPRESENTATIONS  "  OF  THE  WEST. 

Very  few  Eastern  people  have  a  correct  concep- 
tion of  Western  society,  or  the  rapid  progress  of 
the  West.  The  exultant  "  Eureka  "  springs  to  the 
lips  of  the  wanderer  from  boyhood's  Eastern  home, 
when  he  treads  the  horizon-bound  prairie,  or  roams 
along  the  banks  of  our  lakes  and  rivers;  but  it  dies 
away  unuttered  as  he  mingles  in  our  society,  or 
compares  our  works  of  improvement  with  the  time 
in  which  they  have  been  accomplished ;  for  then 
his  soul  is  filled  with  emotions  of  wonder  and  sur- 
-prise  to  find  that  our  valley  is  so  unlike  what  his 
day-dream  fancies  had  painted  it.  The  prairie, 
with  its  rich  soil  and  profuse  vegetation  —  a  wide 
expanse  of  natural  garden  plot  —  is  like  what  he 
had  conceived  ;  the  forests,  the  rivers,  the  lakes,  the 
mounds,  these  are  somewhat  like  his  fanciful  ideas ; 
but  the  character  of  our  people,  and  the  works 
they  have  performed,  are  totally  unlike  all  that  the 
generality  of  Eastern  people  have  imagined. 

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In  emigrating  to  the  West,  men  have  come  here, 
not  to  be  conquered  by  nature,  but  to  make  her 
lavish  bounty  subservient  to  their  wants  and  aspi- 
rations. Therefore,  in  our  Western  homes,  idle- 
ness, or  vulgarity,  or  ignorance,  are  rarely  met. 
The  father  remembers  the  gentle  courtesy,  that 
gave  such  a  charm  to  the  social  intercourse  which 
had  made  his  early  years  a  long  season  of  almost 
undisturbed  happiness ;  he  remembers  how,  in  his 
former  home,  the  priceless  boon  of  education  raised 
men  far  above  the  level ;  he  looks  forward  to  the 
coming  time,  when  his  children  will  jostle  through 
a  crowded  city,  or  dwell  in  the  country  whose 
every  acre  of  rich  soil  shall  yield  to  industry  its 
meet  reward  —  and  he  builds  a  school-house,  pat- 
ronizes booksellers  and  printers,  and  introduces  into 
his  family  the  refining  influences  that  endear  to  his 
memory  his  old  home.  The  mother  has  like  hopes 
in  the  future  of  the  West,  shares  in  her  husband's 
wishes,  and  encourages  and  aids  him.  Thus  it  is 
that  pleasure,  comfort,  and  intelligence  —  free,  per- 
haps, from  many  of  the  restraints  of  Eastern  life 
—  are  almost  invariably  to  be  found  in  Western 
homes. 

In  Western  life,  the  trials  and  obstacles  endured 
by  the  early  settler  aroused  his  dormant  energies, 
and  he  became  active  and  persevering.  Nature 
repays  his  toils  with  abundant  harvests,  and  his 
heart  warms  with  gratitude  and  grows  great  with 
generous  impulses.    Around  him,  cities,  villages, 


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manufactories,  and  farm-houses  are  built  up  with 
a  rapidity  rivalling  the  fabulous  wonders  of  the 
"  Arabian  Nights ; "  and  he  drinks  in  large  draughts 
of  the  spirit  of  enterprise  which  does  all  this.  He 
sees  men  whom  he  knew  in  the  East  as  only  "  no- 
bodies," aspiring  to  be  "  somebodies  "  in  the  West 
— heading  the  van  of  political  parties,  boldly  de- 
bating in  the  councils  of  the  people,  vigorously 
laboring  to  advance  new  and  gigantic  enterprises 
—  and  he  forms  a  more  exalted  and  correct  esti- 
mate of  mankind.  Perhaps"  he  grows  ambitious 
too,  and  endeavors  himself  to  become  a  leader, 
instead  of  a  follower.  He  tills  with  his  own  hands 
more  acres  than  his  father  owned,  he  gathers 
larger  crops  than  they  did,  he  has  brighter  anticipa- 
tions, of  the  future,  and  all  his  ideas,  sentiments, 
and  impulses,  are  in  proportion  vivified  and 
enlarged.  And  thus  it  is  that  Western  people 
become  energetic,  persevering,  enterprising,  ambi- 
tious, and  generous,  in  the  extreme. 

In  the  union  of  these  characteristics  in  our  peo- 
ple lies  the  true  secret  of  the  rapid  progress  of  our 
country,  and  the  West  generally,  which  is  greater 
and  more  widely  extended  than  Eastern  people 
believe. 

The  sun  goes  down  at  night,  casting  his  last 
rays  upon  the  lingering  form  of  the  Indian  jour- 
neyer  to  the  farther  west.  As  it  rises  in  the  morn- 
ing, its  beams  flash  back  from  the  axe  of  the  white 
man,  as  he  shapes  the  rude  logs  which  are  to  form 


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his  habitation.  A  few  days  pass  on,  and  then  the 
curling  smoke  roils  up  from  the  fire  of  the  first 
settler.  Through  the  long  winter  he  plies  his  axe ; 
and,  when  spring  birds  begin  to  carol,  their  music 
is  drowned  by  the  buzz  of  the  saw-mill.  Summer 
passes,  and  when  winter  comes  again,  new  dwell- 
ings surround  the  house  of  the  first  pioneer,  and 
more  axe-strokes  than  his  ring  through  the  forest. 

Again  spring  returns,  and  with  it  come  new  set- 
tlers, to  live  with  the  lumberman  and  his  family  — 
the  tailor,  the  shoemaker,  and  the  dress-maker  to 
clothe  them  ;  the  grocery-keeper  and  the  merchant 
to  supply  their  wants;  the  farmer  to  raise  their 
grain ;  the  schoolmaster  to  teach  their  children ;  the 
minister  to  preach  to  and  counsel  and  advise  with 
them ;  the  doctor  to  cure  them  when  sick ;  the 
lawyer  to  settle  or  make  their  difficulties.  Then 
the  settlement  has  become  a  village — not  an  East- 
ern one,  but  a  wide  awake,  go-ahead,  Western  vil- 
lage. The  newspaper  soon  makes  its  first  appear- 
ance ;  the  editor  talks  largely  of  the  prospects  of 
the  village,  and  of  the  agricultural  and  lumbering 
country  around  it,  and  proposes  more  improve- 
ments to  the  village  in  any  one  number  of  his 
paper  than  would  be  sufficient  to  paralyze  a  Down- 
East  community.  Adventurers  push  out  into  the 
country,  pick  out  more  locations  and  build  up  more 
villages.  More  farmers  and  lumbermen  come  into 
the  country.  The  lumbering  business  makes  a 
ready  market  for  the  farmer's  produce,  while  the 

9* 


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lumbermen's  commodities  are  more  than  sufficient 
to  supply  the  home  demand,  and  "  ten-acre  "  rafts 
are  run  down  the  river  to  the  large  cities  below. 

Perhaps,  at  the  time  when  the  first  pioneer  was 
erecting  his  log  cabin,  in  some  farm-house  or  in 
the  attic  of  some  city  boarding-house,  "  away  Down 
East,"  sits  one  who  has  _a  map  before  him.  He 
sticks  a  pin  in  some  particular  point,  and  tries  to 
judge  whether  it  would  be  a  good  place  for  him  to 
select  for  his  Western  home.  He  inquires  of  trav- 
elers, and  reads  newspapers,  to  learn  what  he  can 
of  the  country.  Two  or  three  years  pass  before  he 
fairly  makes  up  his  mind,  and  then  he  starts  for  the 
West.  When  he  reaches  the  point  he  had  se- 
lected, great  is  his  surprise  to  find  villages  and  cul- 
tivated fields  all  around  him,  and  that  the  West  of 
which  he  has  dreamed,  and  the  hardships  which 
he  has  come  prepared  to  meet,  are  still  a  far-off 
land.  He  finds  that  his  home  is  to  be  where  he 
can  enjoy  all  the  comforts,  and  meet  with  all  the 
refinements,  of  the  East  —  among  a  people  whom 
he  cannot  but  admire,  and  whose  peculiarities  will 
soon  be  his  own.  He  gains  a  freedom  that  he 
could  not  have  experienced  in  the  East ;  his  labor 
is  repaid  better  than  it  was  there.  His  mind  every 
day  comes  in  contact  with  the  quick  and  strong 
intellect  which  characterizes  Western  people,  and 
receives  its  natural  polish  and  elasticity.  He  gains 
in  health,  because  the  air  is  pure  and  bracing; 


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103 


mind  and  body  are  exercised  equally  and  properly ; 
he  laughs  heartily  occasionally,  and  is  always  light- 
hearted.  Then  the  man  is  a  man  indeed.  Intel- 
lectually and  physically  invigorated,  he  becomes 
one  of  the  most  useful  men  of  the  age  —  a  West- 
em  man! 

You  think,  perhaps,  that  Western  people  are 
extravagant  in  praising  up  the  many  attractions  of 
life  in  the  West,  and  of  boasting  of  their  own 
works ;  yet  all  of  us  were  Eastern  people  but  a  few 
years  since,  and  thought  of  the  West  as  you  do 
now,  that  it  was  the  place  to  make  money,  but  not 
the  place  to  live.  What  Eastern  man  is  there 
among  your  list  of  acquaintances,  who  has  come 
to  the  West,  and  upon  whose  veracity  and  judg- 
ment you  can  rely,  who  did  not  write  back  to  his 
friends  that  life  had  new  charms  for  him,  and  that 
the  West  appeared  as  though  the  most  extravagant 
descriptions  fell  far  short  of  the  reality?  If  we 
boast  of  our  own  works  of  improvement  in  the 
West,  have  we  not  on  every  hand  a  thousand 
proofs  to  sustain  us?  The  former  wild  prairie, 
now  a  cultivated  farm ;  the  floating  palaces  upon 
the  bosom  of  the  river  which  but  a  little  while  ago 
rolled  on  undisturbed  in  its  lonely  beauty;  the 
churches  and  school-houses  that  now  stand  where 
stood  a  few  summers  since  the  Indian's  wig- 
wam ;  the  steam-cars,  that  fly  across  the  land 
swifter  than  the  light-footed  Chippewa,  the  arrow 


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from  his  bow,  or  the  deer  that  he  hunted,  —  are  not 
all  these  proofs  enough  that  we  are  justified  in 
boasting  of  what  we  have  accomplished?  If  you 
think  not,  go  do  as  much  as  we  have  done,  and 
refrain  from  boasting,  if  you  can.  —  North  Star. 


CHAPTER  XVI, 


IMMIGRATION    INTO   THE    NORTHWEST.  WHAT  HAS 

CAUSED  THIS  GREAT  COMMOTION.  EXTRACTS  FROM 

THE  PRESS. 

For  the  past  twelve  or  fifteen  years  there  has 
been  a  large  annual  emigration  from  the  Eastern 
States,  and  latterly  the  Middle  States,  to  the  north- 
ern half  of  the  Mississippi  Valley;  and, instead  of 
decreasing,  the  tide  of  emigration  appears  to  be 
continually  swelling.  This  year,  as  we  learn  from 
the  New  England  journals,  the  number  of  emi- 
grants westward  will  fully  equal  that  of  1855,  if 
not  exceed  it.  The  constantly  improving  and  ex- 
tending facilities  offered  to  travelers  have  their  influ- 
ence in  inducing  the  inhabitants  of  the  mountain- 
ous regions  of  the  East  to  seek  a  more  agreeable 
home  in  the  fertile  valleys  and  rich  mineral  districts 
of  the  West.  The  more  accurate  knowledge  of 
the  western  country,  the  salubrity  of  the  climate, 
and  the  civilization  of  the  inhabitants,  which  has 
to  a  great  extent  superseded  the  former  ridiculous 
impressions  in  relation  to  everything  western,  will 
also  tend  to  increase  the  number  of  western  home- 
seekers.    These,  and  other  influences,  together  with 

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MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


that  mysterious  desire  for  change — in  both  senses 
of  the  word — which  is  said  to  be  a  prominent 
characteristic  of  the  Yankee,  will  co-operate  to 
cause  a  large  influx  of  Eastern  men  into  the 
Western  States  during  this  and  many  succeeding 
years.  I  can  in  no  better  way  illustrate  this  im- 
mense immigration,  than  by  inserting  extracts  from 
a  few  of  the  newspapers  of  the  Territory.  The 
St.  Paul  Pioneer  says  :  "  No  adequate  idea  of  the 
almost  miraculous  settlement  of  the  country  can 
be  formed  by  our  citizens,  unless  they  are  in  the 
habit  of  visiting  the  country  surrounding  us  fre- 
quently during  the  spring  and  summer  months. 
Immigrants  pour  in  by  thousands,  and  where,  but 
one  short  year  ago,  it  was  an  unclaimed  waste, 
now  cabins  of  settlers — actual  tillers  of  the  soil — 
men  who  came  for  the  purpose  of  making  the  Ter- 
ritory a  permanent  home,  and  not  merely  for  the 
purpose  of  securing  a  pre-emption,  arise  in  close 
proximity  to  each  other,  on  every  side,  as  far  as  the 
power  of  vision  extends.  Instead  of  thousands  of 
acres  remaining  unclaimed,  not  a  single  acre  can 
be  found  but  what  has  an  owner ;  and  instead  of 
a  few  detached  c  claim  shanties,'  the  prairie  is  now 
thickly  dotted  with  them,  and,  in  many  instances, 
although  not  a  year  has  elapsed  since  the  date  of 
their  settlement,  neat  and  commodious  frame 
houses  have  been  erected  by  the  settlers.  Instead 
of  an  uncultivated  waste,  now  on  every  hand  can 
be  seen  fields  of  all  the  cereal  grains,  potatoes, 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


107 


corn,  and,  in  short,  every  article  of  produce  usually 
raised  by  the  farmers  in  the  States. 

"  This  is  not  the  history  of  a  single  settlement. 
It  is  the  same  throughout  the  Territory.  Every- 
where, go  where  you  will,  you  will  find  a  constant 
stream  of  immigrants  coming  into  the  country  from 
every  part  of  the  Union,  who  have  been  attracted 
hither  by  the  salubrity  of  our  climate,  the  produc- 
tiveness of  the  soil,  and  the  facilities  for  obtaining 
a  homestead." 

The  Henderson  Democrat  says  :  "  It  is  astonish- 
ing how  fast  the  claims  are  taken  up  in  the  country 
back,  on  both  sides  of  the  river.  On  the  east  side 
of  the  river  excellent  claims  could  be  found  within 
three  miles  of  the  river  a  few  weeks  ago,  but  they 
are  now  taken  and  occupied  by  actual  settlers. 
Immigrants,  on  the  look-out  for  locations,  are 
traversing  every  part  of  the  country,  and  even  the 
poorest  pieces  are  being  improved.  The  immense 
influx  of  immigrants  into  this  section  of  the  valley 
is  surprising,  and  the  number  seems  to  increase 
constantly.  No  greedy  speculators  can  ever  prey 
upon  the  community,  and  grow  and  fatten  upon 
the  energy  and  enterprise  of  the  actual  settlers. 
Every  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres  will  have  on  it 
a  producer  and  consumer  —  a  producer  of  the  pro- 
ducts of  the  farm,  and  a  consumer  of  merchandize 
and  mechanical  work. 

"  No  vast  tracts  of  country  will  lie  unimproved 
and  unproductive,  because  they  are  beyond  the 


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reach  of  those  who  would  make  them  yield  rich 
harvests,  and  cover  them  with  cheerful  homes,  bene- 
fiting both  themselves  and  society." 

The  St.  Peter  Courier,  of  June  last,  says: 
"  From  forty  to  fifty  immigrant  teams  have  crossed 
our  ferry  the  past  week ;  and,  in  addition  to  this, 
scores  of  families  are  arriving  every  week  by  other 
routes. 

"  On  yesterday  morning  two  more  colonies  arrived 
—  one  bound  for  Crow  River,  the  other  for  Rum 
River.  They  brought  with  them  their  cattle  and 
horses,  and  all  the  paraphernalia  of  farmers." —  St 
Paul  Democrat. 

The  Cleveland  Plaindealer  says :  "  Never  before 
in  the  history  of  the  country  has  the  tide  of  emi- 
gration from  the  East  to  the  Westward  been  so  fast 
and  furious." 

The  rapid  settlement  of  the  country  between 
Hastings  and  Faribault  may  be  learned  from  the 
following  memorandum  of  the  travel  in  and  out  on 
the  Cannon  River  road,  in  one  day,  viz. :  Double 
teams,  149;  single  buggies,  14;  stages,  2;  yokes 
of  cattle,  14. 

I  will  conclude  with  a  word  or  two  from  the 
Eastern  press. 

The  Bennington  (Vermont)  State  Banner  says  : 
"  Some  twenty,  mostly  from  "Washington,  took  the 
cars  at  this  place  during  the  week,  destined  for 
that i  garden  of  Eden,'  where  the  '  land  flows  with 
milk  and  honey' — where  a  man  has  but  to  'open 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


109 


wide  his  mouth'  to  have  it  4 filled  with  the  finest 
of  wheat.'  Nothing  but  a  parcel  of  ' old  fogies' 
will  be  found  in  Vermont  five  years  hence.  The 
prospect  for  a  young  man  here,  unless  he  chances 
to  be  'born  with  a  silver  spoon  in  his  mouth,'  is 
anything  but  flattering.  He  can,  if  he  toils  early 
and  late,  and  eats  the  bread  of  carefulness,  possibly 
keep  soul  and  body  together,  and  keep  himself  and 
family  from  becoming  inmates  of  the  town  farm. 
But  this  will  not  at  all  satisfy  the  £  Young  America' 
spirit  of  the  age,  and  they  will  never  rest  easy 
under  such  an  arrangement.  There  are  plenty  of 
homes  in  the  West,  and  thither  our  young  men, 
accompanied  by  their  young  and  beautiful '  help- 
meets,' are  rapidly  hastening.  Success  to  them. 
May  they  even  reap  more  of  earth's  bounties  and 
blessings  than  ever  imagination  has  pictured  be- 
fore their  anxious  eyes,  or  their  joyous  hearts  had 
ever  anticipated." 

The  N.  Y.  Independent  says :  "  Probably  not 
less  than  a  quarter  of  a  million  of  people  will 
emigrate  the  present  year  to  our  frontier  States 
and  Territories.  Never  was  there  such  excitement 
on  the  subject  before.  It  pervades  all  classes,  in 
every  city,  town,  and  village.  Students  in  colleges, 
professional,  business  men — the  most  talented  in 
all  quarters — are  taking  possession  of  the  soil,  as  a 
surer  foundation  for  permanent  prosperity  than  can 
be  found  in  any  other  vocation.  What  a  glorious 
spectacle,  and  how  promising  the  future !  Let  it 
10 


110 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


be  praised  and  encouraged,  as  the  surest  policy  to 
promote  our  growth,  strength,  and  high  elevation. 

"  The  Stafford  Western  Emigration  Company, 
comprising  from  600  to  700  persons,  of  all  ages 
and  both  sexes,  including  from  100  to  200  from  the 
city  of  Lowell,  are  to  start  soon  for  the  4  Far  West,' 
The  New  York  and  Erie  Railroad  Company  will 
forward  this  large  party,  in  detachments,  as  far  as 
Dubuque,  Iowa,  at  which  point  the  locating  com- 
mittee will  make  known  the  site  selected  for  the 
settlement  of  the  colony.  The  company  is  com- 
posed of  some  very  substantial  New  England  men, 
who  have  already  paid  to  their  treasurer  $20,000." 

The  New  Hampshire  Patriot  of  a  late  date  says : 
"  We  hear  of  persons  in  all  sections  of  the  State, 
who  are  starting  for  the  West,  or  are  preparing  to 
go,  while  many  have  already  gone  this  spring.  In 
one  day  last  week,  an  agent  on  one  of  the  great 
routes  to  the  West  sold  fifteen  tickets  to  men 
going  from  this  vicinity.  There  is  no  doubt  that 
more  people  will  leave  this  State  for  the  West  this 
year  than  have  gone  in  any  past  three  years." 

Immense  Foreign  Emigration  Threatened. — 
We  see,  by  a  letter  from  the  London  correspon- 
dent of  the  National  Intelligencer,  that  most  ex- 
tensive preparations  are  being  made  to  facilitate 
emigration  from  Germany,  on  a  larger  scale  than 
ever  before.  This  will  no  doubt  enable  Roman 
Catholicism  to  further  its  views  in  relation  to  the 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


Ill 


government  of  this  country.  The  immigration  for 
the  past  year  was  470,000,  exclusive  of  those  who 
came  by  the  way  of  Nova  Scotia  and  the  Canadas. 
Taking  these  into  account,  it  will  not  be  less  than 
half  a  million.  Yet  in  the  present  year  we  are 
to  have  a  still  larger  immigration. 

"  A  steamer,  with  one  hundred  and  fifty  German 
immigrants,  from  Bremen,  arrived  at  St.  Louis  re- 
cently. They  were  on  their  route  to  Iowa  and 
Minnesota,  and  since  they  left  Bremen  eleven  chil- 
dren have  been  born  to  them." 

The  Lansingburg  (N.  Y.)  Gazette  says:  "  The 
other  morning  we  missed  the  peculiar  ring  of  our 
milkman's  bells,  substituted  by  a  tinkle  on  another 
key.  '  Where  is  Peter  Ham  ? '  we  asked  of  the 
stranger.  '  He 's  sold  to  me  and  gone  West,'  was 
the  response. 

"  A  day  or  two  since  we  stopped  at  the  fence  of 
Mr.  Lea's  garden.  ' Where  is  Mr.  Lea?'  we 
asked  of  one  of  his  family.  '  Prospecting  out 
West.'— 'Is  Mr.  Charles  Hitchcock  in?'— 'No, 
sir,  he 's  out  West.'  — '  I  shall  move  first  of  May,' 
says  Andrew  Derrick. — 'Where?' — 'Out  West.' 
And  so  we  might  go  on  to  the  end  of  the  chapter. 

"  Why,  '  land  of  goodness,'  as  the  old  woman 
said,  what  is  to  become  of  us,  at  this  rate  ?  Such 
an  exodus  was  never  known  in  our  town.  We 
hope  there  will  enough  remain  to  bury  those  who 
can't  get  away." 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

PUBLIC   LANDS  IN  MINNESOTA.  SALES  THEREOF  IN 

1855.  PRE-EMPTIONS.  LAND  SUBJECT  TO  PRE- 
EMPTION. 

The  amount  of  land  entered  in  the  land  offices 
in  this  Territory,  prior  to  the  first  of  January,  1855, 
was  as  follows : 


Whole  No.  of 
acres. 

Stillwater,  400,709  52 
Sauk  Rapids,  31,507  59 
Boot  River,  82,414  07 
Minneapolis,      12,876  04 


Located  by 
Warrants. 

158,528  18 

4,600  00 

1,960  00 

2,151  00 


Amount  received 
in  cash. 

$302,482  80 

33,634  48 

103,018  12 

16,093  81 


Total, 


Stillwater, 
Sauk  Rapids, 
Root  River, 
Minneapolis, 
Winona, 
Red  Wing, 

Total. 
Sales  in  1855, 
Prior  to  1855, 


527,607  22       167,239  18       $455,229  21 
1855. 


Whole  No.  of 
acres. 

180,413  80 
64,499  50 
243,465  04 
137,195  80 
218,266  37 
196,390  69 

1,040,231  20 
527,607  22 


Located  by 
Warrants. 

56,484  85 
19,609  00 
81,580  00 
8,609  00 
47,340  00 
43,068  00 


Amount  received 
in  cash. 

$154,861  83 

56,692  15 

304,332  91 

183,677  17 

218,527  12 

204,572  99 


256,781  85  $1,122,844  17 
167,239  18        455,229  21 


Total.        1,567,838  42 


424,020  93 


$1,578,073  38 
(112) 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


113 


"  In  the  history  of  the  country,  we  do  not  think 
such  a  record  as  the  above  can  be  found.  In  one 
year,  the  United  States  received  from  the  sales  of 
public  lands  in  this  Territory,  over  $1,000,000; 
and  in  addition,  we  find  that,  in  1855,  256,781 
acres  of  land  warrants,  donated  by  the  General 
Government  to  old  soldiers  and  modern  speculators, 
as  a  reward  for  the  bravery  of  one  class  in  the  ser- 
vice of  their  country,  and  the  zeal  displayed  by  the 
other  species  in  beseiging  Congress,  were  located 
in  Minnesota.  By  placing  the  Government  valua- 
tion upon  this  land,  we  find  that  the  total  value  of 
the  land  disposed  of  in  1855,  in  this  Territory, 
amounts  to  the  sum  of  $1,443,823,  and  since  1848, 
to  $2,108,100. 

We  do  not  think  any  State  or  Territory  in  the 
Union  can  exhibit  such  substantial  marks  of  pro- 
gress during  the  year  1855  as  the  above  indicates. 
It  will  be  perceived  that  the  sales  of  land  during 
that  year  doubled  the  entire  amount  disposed  of  dur- 
ing the  preceding  seven  years,  and  that  the  receipts 
into  the  United  States  Treasury,  for  lands  disposed 
of  during  1855,  amounted  to  nearly  treble  that  of 
the  previous  seven  years. 

"  We  do  not  claim  the  sales  of  1855  as  having 
been  made  exclusively  to  the  settlers  of  that  year. 
Far  from  it.  There  was  no  land  office  west  of  the 
Mississippi  in  this  Territory  until  1854,  and  set- 
tiers  poured  into  that  fertile  portion  of  Minnesota 
as  soon  as  the  treaty,  by  which  the  Indians  ceded 

(10*)' 


114 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


it  to  the  General  Government,  was  ratified.  But 
that  the  population  of  the  west  side  more  than 
doubled  in  1855  we  firmly  believe  ;  and  if  one-half 
of  the  sales  made  during  the  year  are  awarded  to 
the  settlers  of  that  year,  we  do  not  think  the  esti- 
mate will  be  extravagant. 

"Pre-emptions  in  1855.  —  The  number  of  pre- 
emptions granted  to  actual  settlers  is  a  fair  indica- 
tion of  the  prosperity  and  growth  of  a  new  coun- 
try. This  proposition,  which  no  one  will  dispute, 
places  Minnesota  at  the  head  of  the  States  and 
Territories  of  the  Union,  in  the  rapidity  with  which 
it  is  being  settled.  The  records  of  the  general 
land  office  at  Washington  bear  witness  to  the  fact, 
that  the  number  of  patents  granted  for  lands  pre- 
empted in  Minnesota  exceeds  the  whole  number  of 
patents  granted  to  the  remaining  Territories  and 
States  of  the  Union.  The  settlement  of  no  State 
in  the  confederacy  can  parallel  this  unexampled 
growth ! 

"  It  is  extremely  difficult  to  obtain  the  figures 
showing  the  amount  of  the  pre-emption  business 
in  1855.  The  land  officers,  in  their  reports,  merely 
gave  us  the  amount  of  land  entered  under  the  pre- 
emption act  of  1841,  during  the  year. 

"  In  the  Sauk  Rapids  district,  during  the  year, 
five  thousand  four  hundred  and  twenty-seven  acres 
were  entered  by  pre-emption. 

"  In  the  Red  Wing  District,  one  hundred  and 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


115 


forty-four  thousand  and  five  acres  were  sold  by  pre- 
emption. 

"  In  the  Winona  district,  one  thousand  and 
sixty-three  pre-emptions  were  allowed,  covering 
one  hundred  and  forty-nine  thousand  nine  hundred 
and  seventy-nine  acres.  This  would  make  an 
average  of  one  hundred  and  forty-one  acres  to  each 
pre-emptor. 

"  In  the  Minneapolis  district,  the  number  of  pre- 
emptions allowed  since  the  establishment  of  the 
office,  in  1854,  to  the  end  of  1855,  was  one  thou- 
sand and  sixty-six.  All  but  four  of  these  pre-emp- 
tions were  made  on  twelve  fractional  townships, 
containing,  in  round  numbers,  one  hundred  and 
sixty  thousand  acres.  In  the  month  of  October, 
five. hundred  and  twenty-five  pre-emptions  were 
allowed  at  the  Minneapolis  office. 

"  In  the  Stillwater  district,  during  1854,  one 
thousand  three  hundred  and  eight  acres  were  entered 
under  the  pre-emption  law  of  1841. 

"  In  the  Brownsville  district,  one  hundred  and 
twenty-six  thousand  four  hundred  and  seventy-nine 
acres  were  entered  by  pre-emption. 

"  The  above  statement  shows  that  in  1855,  more 
than  one-half  of  the  land  sold  in  Minnesota  was 
disposed  of  under  the  beneficial  workings  of  the 
pre-emption  law  of  1841." 

"  Lands  subject  to  Entry  and  to  Pre-Emp- 
tion.  —  In  the  Stillwater  and  Sauk  Rapids  dis- 


116 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


tricts,  previous  to  the  proclamation  of  the  President 
in  the  fall  of  1855,  there  was  land  subject  to  private 
entry  at  the  land  offices ;  but,  in  the  four  districts 
west  of  the  river,  there  was  no  land  subject  to  pri- 
vate entry  until  after  the  public  sales  of  October 
and  November  last. 

"  There  was,  on  the  first  day  of  January,  subject 
to  private  entry,  the  following  amount  of  land  at 
the  different  offices  in  the  Territory ;  at  the  Still- 
water land  office,  691,200  acres;  Sauk  Rapids, 
483,840;  Brownsville,  691,200 ;  Minneapolis,  2,637 ; 
Winona,  63,000 ;  Red  Wing,  20,000. 

"  This  amount  has  been  materially  diminished 
since  the  first  of  January.  At  all  the  offices,  since 
that  time,  land  has  been  entered  by  the  settlers  and 
speculators,  in  considerable  quantities. 

"  In  all  the  districts  there  is  a  vast  amount  of 
land  subject  to  pre-emption  under  the  provisions  of 
the  act  of  1841.  At  the  Stillwater  office,  on  the 
first  of  January,  there  were  fourteen  townships 
subject  to  pre-emption ;  and  the  land  officers  had 
been  notified  by  the  department,  that  the  plats  of 
thirty-six  townships  would  shortly  be  returned. 
Of  this  land,  much  of  it  is  valuable  farming  land 
in  the  vicinity  of  Rum  River.  In  the  Sauk  Rapids 
district,  twenty-two  townships  have  been  surveyed, 
and  are  open  to  pre-emption.  In  the  Brownsville 
district,  there  are  one  hundred  and  twenty-four 
townships  subject  to  pre-emption.  The  surveys  in 
this  district  have  been  prosecuted  one  hundred  and 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


117 


seventy-five  miles  west  of  the  Mississippi.  In  the 
Minneapolis  district,  on  the  first  of  January,  there 
were  but  three  townships  subject  to  pre-emption. 
Since  that  time,  plats  of  other  townships  have 
been  returned.  In  the  Winona  district,  there  are 
two  million  acres  subject  to  pre-emption,  and  in 
the  Red  Wing  district,  one  million  acres."  * 

Later.  —  The  register  of  the  Minneapolis  dis- 
trict gives  the  following  statistics  for  the  six  months 
ending  the  1st  of  July,  1856 :  pre-empted,  63,015 
acres ;  entered,  1,703 ;  subject  to  entry,  about  900 
acres. 

In  the  Stillwater  land  office,  during  the  month  of 
June,  the  sales  of  public  lands  were  as  follows : 
For  cash,  7,281  35  acres,  valued  at  $9,101  69 ;  for 
warrants,  134,671  24  acres,  valued  at  $168,339  05 ; 
total,  141,952  59  acres,  valued  at  $177,440  74. 
The  sales  for  July  averaged  about  5000  acres  per 
day. 

*  For  these  valuable  statistics,  we  are  indebted  to  the  editor  .of 
the  St.  Paul  Pioneer  and  Democrat. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 


BOUNDARY  AND  DESCRIPTION  OF  LAND  DISTRICTS,  AND 
CHARACTER  OF  THE  SETTLERS.  NEW  LAND  DIS- 
TRICTS, ETC. 

Stillwater  Land  District. — The  Sauk  Rap- 
ids and  Stillwater  districts  comprise  all  the  lands 
east  of  the  Mississippi  in  Minnesota ;  but,  by  the 
provisions  of  the  act  of  1854,  creating  new  land 
districts  in  Minnesota,  the  Sauk  Rapids  district 
was  extended  west  of  the  Mississippi,  taking  in 
five  townships  fronting  on  the  river,  and  running 
west  to  the  "  Drift  Wood,"  and  the  Red  River  of 
the  North. 

In  answer  to  an  inquiry  in  reference  to  the  char- 
acter of  the  population  in  this  district,  Mr.  Hol- 
comb  writes  that,  "  in  a  business  sense,  they  are  an 
enterprising  business  people ;  and,  to  justify  this 
conclusion,  I  will  state  some  facts.  In  this  dis- 
trict there  are  saw-mills  that  saw  an  entire  log  by 
once  running  through,  and  so  arranged,  that  one 
log  follows  another  continuously,  without  loss  of 
time.  At  one  of  the  mills,  a  circular  saw,  for  mak- 
ing flooring  and  fencing,  cuts  both  ways ;  that  is, 
as  the  carriage  moves  one  way,  the  saw  cuts  in  its 

(11*) 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


119 


downward  motion,  and  as  it  returns,  the  saw  cuts 
on  the  opposite  side,  in  its  upward  motion.  Be- 
sides these,  we  have  machines  for  planing,  floor- 
ing and  siding,  making  shingles,  lath,  doors,  sash, 
wagons,  sleighs,  etc.,  to  which  I  may  add,  the  large 
and  increasing  business  of  logging  in  the  pineries. 
It  has  been  estimated  that  one  hundred  million  feet 
of  pine  lumber,  in  the  log,  were  put  into  the  dif- 
ferent streams  in  this  district,  within  the  present 
year,  which,  at  $10  per  thousand  feet,  the  estimated 
value,  amounts  to  $1,000,000.  Interspersed  through 
the  entire  pine  country  are  excellent  lands  for  agri- 
culture, in  good  proportions,  so  that  the  $1,000,- 
000  annual  resources  from  the  pine  is  so  much  in 
addition  to  the  resources  of  an  exclusively  agricul- 
tural district,  and  harmonizes  well  as  a  basis  for  a 
home  market. 

Sauk  Rapids  District. —  The  country  lying  on 
the  Mississippi,  above  the  falls,  though  unequalled 
in  fertility  and  natural  advantages,  has  not  in- 
creased so  rapidly  in  population  and  wealth  as  the 
southern  portion  of  the  Territory.  The  reason  for 
this  is  obvious ;  and  is  to  be  found  in  the  fact  that 
the  upper  country  has  been  without  the  proper 
means  of  affording  the  immigrant  a  speedy  and 
cheap  conveyance  to  its  fertile  prairies  and  beauti- 
ful wood-lands.  Boats  are  now  running  from  St. 
Anthony  to  Sauk  Rapids,  as  also  a  regular  line  of 
stages.     A  road  has  been  constructed  from  the 


120 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


west  end  of  Lake  Superior  to  the  Mississippi,  and 
it  is  not  improbable  that  a  large  immigration  will  be 
diverted  to  Benton  and  the  surrounding  counties, 
by  the  Lake  Superior  route,  during  the  coming 
summer. 

Mr.  Woods  also  sets  down  the  increase  of  his 
district,  in  population,  at  one  hundred  per  cent. 
He  says  of  the  population, that  they  are  "industri- 
ous, enterprising,  and  money-making." 

Of  the  lands  in  the  Sauk  Rapids  district  that 
remain  subject  to  private  entry,  a  great  proportion 
consists  of  good  farming  land,  well  watered,  and 
eligibly  situated.  Much  choice  prairie  land  near 
the  Mississippi  River  remains  yet  subject  to  private 
entry.  This  land  makes  excellent  farms  with  com- 
paratively little  labor,  and  wood  for  building  and 
fencing  can  always  be  secured  within  a  reasonable 
distance. 

The  Sauk  River  valley,  on  the  west  side  of  the 
Mississippi  River,  is  now  being  rapidly  settled  by 
an  industrious  and  enterprising  population,  and  is 
destined  to  become  one  of  the  most  populous  and 
wealthy,  as  well  as  most  attractive,  valleys  in  Min- 
nesota. Many  large  farms  are  already  under  culti- 
vation, and  the  yield  of  wheat,  oats,  and  potatoes 
is  such  as  could  hardly  be  expected  even  from  the 
fertile  bottoms  of  Illinois.  This  beautiful  valley  is 
yet  unsurveyed,  but  is  claimed  and  occupied  for 
many  miles  along  the  banks  of  Sauk  River  —  more 
than  twenty — west  from  its  mouth. 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


121 


Lying  upon  the  Mississippi,  there  are  in  the 
district  immense  pineries,  commencing  at  the 
mouth  of  Crow  Wing  River,  and  extending  for 
more  than  fifty  miles  northward,  along  the  bank  of 
the  Mississippi,  and  many  miles  back.  Besides 
this  vast  pinery,  much  valuable  pine  land  is  found 
on  Rum,  Platte,  and  Long  Prairie  Rivers.  Eight 
saw-mills  are  in  operation  within  the  district. 

Root  River  Land  District.  — This  district 
comprises  a  favorite  portion  of  Minnesota,  and 
one  which,  as  the  tabular  statements  exhibit,  has 
more  rapidly  increased  in  population  during  1855 
than  any  other  portion  of  the  Territory.  In  the 
Root  River  district,  there  are  at  present,  subject  to 
pre-emption,  lands  in  the  counties  of  Fillmore, 
Mower,  Freeborn,  Faribault,  and  in  the  southern 
tier  of  townships  in  Olmstead,  Dodge,  Steele,  and 
Blue  Earth  counties.  For  fertility,  these  lands  are 
not  exceeded  by  any  on  the  continent. 

Mr.  M' Kenny  estimates  that  the  rate  of  increase 
in  population,  in  the  Brownsville  district,  during 
1855,  has  been  five  hundred  per  cent;  and,  judging 
from  personal  observation,  and  conversations  with 
gentlemen  who  have  had  every  opportunity  of 
acquiring  truthful  information,  we  think  this  esti- 
mate a  small  one,  rather  than  extravagant. 

The  population  of  the  Chatfield  district  consists 
principally  of  emigrants  from  the  States  of  New 
York,  Massachusetts,  Connecticut,  Vermont,  Penn- 
ii 


122 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


sylvania,  Ohio,  Michigan,  Indiana,  Illinois,  Wis- 
consin, and  Iowa.  There  are  several  extensive  set- 
tlements of  Norwegians  in  this  district,  as  well  as 
German,  Irish,  Scotch,  Swedes,  and  Canadians. 
As  to  the  character  of  these  settlers,  they  are  an 
intelligent  and  industrious  people.  This  district, 
in  common  with  the  others  created  by  the  law  of 
1854,  is  thirty  miles  wide  north  and  south,  and 
extends  west  from  the  Mississippi  River  to  the  Big 
Sioux  River.  The  southern  line  of  the  district  is 
the  boundary  line  between  Minnesota  and  Iowa. 

Minneapolis  Land  District.  —  The  Minneap- 
olis district  extends  west  from  the  Mississippi 
River  to  the  line  of  the  Sioux  reservation  which 
runs  from  the  Big  Sioux  River  to  Lac  Traverse. 

The  settlements  in  this  district  have  advanced  far 
beyond  the  surveys,  and  the  land  officers  estimate 
the  increase  of  population  at  four  hundred  per  cent. 

The  settlers  in  this  district  are  farmers;  indus- 
trious, thrifty,  moral,  and  intelligent.  About  two- 
thirds  of  them  are  Americans  by  birth,  and  the 
rest  are  Irish,  Germans,  and  Canadian  French,  in 
about  equal  proportions. 

The  country  between  the  Minnesota  and  Missis- 
sippi, situated  in  this  district,  is  very  fertile,  and  in 
its  wild  state  presents  a  beautiful  appearance. 
Rolling  prairies,  dotted  with  small  lakes  of  clear 
water,  and  orchard-like  groves  of  trees,  are  the 
principal  characteristics  of  the  scenery.  Many 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK, 


123 


thriving  inland  villages  are  springing  up,  while  the 
farming  population  is  increasing  at  a  rapid  rate. 

Winona  Land  District.  —  This  district  is  thirty 
miles  wide  from  north  to  south,  and  extends  west 
from  the  Mississippi  to  the  Big  Sioux  River. 
There  are  in  this  district  nearly  two  millions  of 
acres  subject  to  pre-emption,  including  as  choice 
agricultural  lands  as  the  most  theoretical  or  practi- 
cal farmer  could  desire.  It  is  mostly  prairie,  inter- 
spersed with  groves  of  timber,  watered  by  numer- 
ous springs,  rivulets,  and  rivers,  which  abound  in 
speckled  trout  and  others  of  the  finny  tribes  (listen, 
ye  disciples  of  the  good  Izaak  Walton!),  and  afford- 
ing, in  their  course  to  the  Father  of  Waters,  numer- 
ous water  powers,  capable  of  easy  improvement. 

In  speaking  of  the  population  of  this  district, 
Mr.  L.  D.  Smith,  the  receiver  at  the  land  office  at 
Winona,  says,  that,  "  in  point  of  intelligence,  per- 
severance, and  every  qualification  going  to  make 
up  an  enlightened  and  prosperous  community,  they 
will  compare  favorably  with  any  other  class  of 
persons  that  he  has  ever  seen." 

The  great  majority  of  the  settlers  are  from  the 
States  —  New  York  having  contributed  much  the 
largest  number.  There  are  two  or  three  settle- 
ments of  Norwegians  in  this  district,  and  Scot- 
land has  its  representatives  in  a  few  localities; 
while,  from  different  parts  of  the  district,  the 


124 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


"  sweet  German  accent  and  the  rich  Irish  brogue  " 
are  frequently  heard. 

The  increase  of  population  in  the  district  for  the 
year  1855  has  been  at  least  five  hundred  per  cent, 
which,  to  some,  may  appear  incredible,  though  Mr. 
Smith  is  satisfied  that  the  facts  will  fully  sustain 
the  assertion.  To  show  the  rapid  increase  in  that 
portion  of  Minnesota,  he  instances  the  county  of 
Olmsted.  In  what  is  now  Olmsted  county,  two 
years  since,  the  white  man  had  not  disturbed  the 
peaceful  denizen  of  the  forest;  but  within  that 
period  civilization  has  taken  possession,  and  the 
beautiful  prairies  have  been  converted  into  broad 
fields,  yielding  bountifully,  thus  enriching  the  far- 
mer, and  converting  a  wide  solitude  into  a  settled 
district,  numbering  nearly  or  quite  5,000  inhabi- 
tants. The  same  is  true,  not  only  of  other  locali- 
ties in  this  district,  but  of  the  entire  southern 
portion  of  the  Territory. 

Quite  a  number  of  mills  are  already  in  operation 
in  different  parts  of  the  district,  and  many  more 
are  in  process  of  construction.  Many  thriving 
towns  are  springing  up  in  the  interior,  and  along 
the  Minnesota  Valley,  among  which  are  Stockton, 
St.  Charles,  Rochester,  Mantorville,  Faribault, 
Oronoco,  Ashland,  St.  Peter,  Traverse  des  Sioux, 
etc.  Schools  and  churches  are  fast  furnishing  the 
means  of  mental  and  moral  culture.  A  charter 
for  a  railroad  has  been  obtained  and  accepted,  to 
connect  the  Mississippi  at  Winona  with  the  waters 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


125 


of  the  Minnesota  River ;  and,  when  this  shall  be 
completed,  the  district  will  have  unrivalled  facilities 
of  intercommunication. 

Red  Wing  Land  District. —  Messrs.  Phelps 
and  Graham,  in  a  recent  communication  to  us, 
estimate  that  the  population  of  the  district  has 
more  than  quadrupled  during  the  past  year,  1855. 
From  the  declaratory  statements  filed  in  that  office, 
it  would  seem  that  that  settlement  has  reached  far 
back  into  the  interior,  and,  in  some  instances,  entire 
townships,  with  occasional  exceptions,  have  been 
claimed  by  the  pre-emptor.  There  is  yet,  however, 
in  the  district,  a  large  quantity  of  very  desirable 
farming  land,  unclaimed  and  unsettled,  and  which 
offers  great  inducements  to  the  settler,  from  its 
accessibility,  and  the  ease  with  which  an  excellent 
and  permanent  market  can  be  reached. 

The  Mississippi  skirts  the  district  on  the  east, 
and  the  Minnesota,  in  the  valley  of  which  are  the 
most  beautiful  and  fertile  lands  in  the  West,  runs 
twice  diagonally  across  the  district.  The  Cannon 
and  Vermillion  Rivers,  with  their  branches,  the 
branches  of  the  Zumbro,  and  the  smaller  streams 
running  into  the  Mississippi  and  Minnesota,  afford 
excellent  water  power,  and  make  this  region  of 
country  the  best  watered  in  Minnesota. 

Red  Wing,  Hastings,  Shakopee,  Henderson,  and 
Le  Sueur,  among  the  most  flourishing  towns  in 
the  Territory,  are  in  this  district.  Their  growth, 
11* 


126 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


although  marvellous,  has  scarcely  equalled  the 
growth  of  the  back  country  which  supports  them. 
Under  the  operation  of  the  pre-emption  law,  the 
country,  for  one  so  entirely  new,  is  settling  densely, 
and  where,  a  year  ago,  there  was  scarcely  a  habita- 
tion, are  now  to  be  seen  towns  and  farming  settle- 
ments, which,  for  extent  of  improvements  and  ap- 
pearance of  prosperity,  will  find  no  parallel  in  the 
settlement  of  the  West. 

The  settlers  of  this  district  are  a  pretty  general 
admixture  of  the  natives  of  the  States,  Germans, 
Irish,  Swedes,  Norwegians,  etc.;  the  native-born 
population,  however,  largely  predominating  over 
all  classes.  The  settlers  are  enterprising,  indus- 
trious and  prosperous. 

The  Red  Wing  district  is  eminently  an  agricul- 
tural one.  The  back  country  is  undulating,  with 
numerous  streams.  It  is  mainly  prairie,  inter- 
spersed with  groves  of  trees,  and  backed  by  the 
"  Big  Woods,"  with  its  inexhaustible  supply  of 
the  choicest  timber.  There  are  also  many  charming 
lakes  scattered  over  the  district.  This  district  is 
situated  north  of  the  Winona  and  south  of  the 
Minneapolis  district.  The  office  is  located  at  Red 
Wing,  the  county-seat  of  Goodhue  county.  The 
district  is  thirty  miles  wide,  and  runs  west  to  the 
Big  Sioux. 

New  Land  Districts. — The  recent  session  of 
Congress  passed  a  bill,  providing  "  That  all  that 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


127 


portion  of  the  Territory  of  Minnesota  which  lies 
north  of  the  line  dividing  townships  45  and  46, 
north  of  the  base  line  east  of  the  Mississippi 
River,  and  north  of  the  nearest  township  line,  to 
be  determined  hereafter  by  the  commissioner  of  the 
general  land  office,  west  of  said  river,  extending 
thence  west  to  the  Missouri  River,  be,  and  the 
same  is  hereby,  divided  into  and  shall  constitute 
two  additional  land  districts,  to  wit :  All  that  por- 
tion lying  east  of  the  line  dividing  ranges  18  and 
19,  west  of  the  fourth  principal  meridian,  shall  con- 
stitute a  land  district,  to  be  called  the  northeastern 
land  district ;  and  all  that  portion  west  of  the  line 
dividing  said  ranges  18  and  19  shall  constitute  an 
additional  land  district  in  said  Territory,  to  be 
called  the  northwestern  land  district — the  location 
of  the  offices  for  which  shall  be  designated  by  the 
President  of  the  United  States,  and  shall  by  him 
from  time  to  time  be  changed,  as  the  public  interests 
may  seem  to  require." 

An  appropriation  of  $40,000  for  the  survey  of 
the  same  has  also  been  made,  said  surveys  to  show 
meridian,  standard,  parallel,  township,  and  section 
lines. 

The  land  office  for  one  of  the  above  districts 
will  be  upon  the  north  shore  of  Lake  Superior ;  the 
other  on  the  Mississippi  River,  near  Sandy  Lake, 
or  between  the  Mississippi  and  the  Red  River  of 
the  North.  So  all  this  immense  country  is  now  sub- 
ject to  settlement ! 


128 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


Pre-emption  Law.  —  We  give  below  the  points 
which  persons  wishing  to  make  pre-emptions  are 
required  to  observe,  for  the  satisfaction  of  the  officers 
at  the  different  land  offices : 

1.  The  settler  must  never  before  have  had  the 
benefit  of  pre-emption  under  the  act. 

2.  He  must  not,  at  the  time  of  making  the  pre- 
emption, be  the  owner  of  three  hundred  and  twenty 
acres  of  land  in  any  State  or  Territory  in  the 
United  States. 

3.  He  must  settle  upon  and  improve  the  land,  in 
good  faith,  for  his  own  exclusive  use  or  benefit,  and 
not  with  the  intention  of  selling  it  on  speculation ; 
and  must  not  make,  directly  or  indirectly,  any  con- 
tract or  agreement,  in  any  way  or  manner,  with 
any  person  or  persons,  by  which  the  title  which  he 
may  acquire  from  the  United  States  should  inure, 
in  whole  or  in  part,  to  the  benefit  of  anybody  but 
himself. 

4.  He  must  be  twenty-one  years  of  age  and  a 
citizen  of  the  United  States ;  or,  if  a  foreigner, 
must  have  declared  his  intention  to  become  a  citi- 
zen before  the  proper  authority,  and  received  a  cer- 
tificate to  that  effect. 

5.  He  must  build  a  house  on  the  land,  live  in  it, 
and  make  it  his  exclusive  home,  and  must  be  an 
inhabitant  of  the  same  at  the  time  of  making 
application  for  pre-emption.  (Until  lately,  a  single 
man  might  board  with  his  nearest  neighbor ;  but 
the  same  is  now  required  of  a  single  as  a  married 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


129 


man,  except  that  if  married  the  family  of  the  set- 
tler must  also  live  in  the  house.) 

6.  The  law  requires  that  more  or  less  improve- 
ment be  made  on  the  land,  such  as  breaking,  fenc- 
ing, etc.;  but  pre-emptions  are  granted  where  a 
half-acre  is  broken  and  inclosed. 

7.  It  is  necessary  that  no  other  person  entitled 
to  the  right  of  pre-emption  reside  on  the  land  at 
the  same  time. 

8.  No  person  is  permitted  to  remove  from  his 
own  land  and  make  a  pre-emption  in  the  same 
State  or  Territory. 

9.  The  settler  is  required  to  bring  with  him  to 
the  land  office  a  written  or  printed  application,  set- 
ting forth  the  facts  in  his  case  of  the  first,  second, 
and  third  requirement  here  mentioned,  with  a  cer- 
tificate appended,  to  be  signed  by  the  register  and 
receiver ;  and  make  affidavit  to  the  same. 

10.  He  is  also  required  to  bring  with  him  a  re- 
spectable witness  of  his  acquaintance,  who  is  know- 
ing to  the  facts  of  his  settlement,  to  make  affidavit 
to  the  fourth,  fifth,  sixth,  seventh,  and  eighth  require- 
ments here  mentioned,  with  the  same  set  forth  on 
paper,  with  a  corresponding  blank  certificate  at- 
tached, to  be  signed  by  the  land  officers. 

11.  The  pre-emptor,  if  a  foreigner,  must  bring 
with  him  to  the  land  office  duplicates  of  his  natural- 
ization papers,  duly  signed  by  the  official  from 
whom  they  were  received. 

12.  A  minor,  who  is  the  head  of  a  family,  or  a 


130 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


widow,  may  also  pre-empt;  their  families  being 
required  to  live  on  the  land.  The  settler  is  re- 
quested to  file  a  written  declaratory  statement  of 
his  intention  to  pre-empt,  before  he  can  proceed 
with  his  pre-emption. 

Fees.  —  1st.  The  fee  required  by  the  register,  for 
filling  a  declaratory  statement,  is  one  dollar.  2d. 
For  granting  a  pre-emption,  the  register  and  re- 
ceiver can  receive  fifty  cents.  3d.  For  duplicate 
of  the  map  of  any  township,  one  dollar  is  required 
by  the  register. 

There  is  nothing  in  this  law  to  prevent  a  single 
unmarried  woman  from  pre-empting,  providing  she 
be  the  "  head  of  a  family."  The  settler  must  file 
his  declaratory  statement  within  three  months  from 
the  time  of  commencing  his  improvements.  After 
filing  his  declaratory  statement,  the  claimant  can 
1  prove  up"  his  claim  any  time  within  one  year, 
if  the  lands  are  in  market;  if  not,  he  can  defer 
payment  till  the  lands  come  into  market. 

It  may  not  be  out  of  place  here  to  allude  to  the 
ease  with  which  the  soil  can  be  brought  into  cul- 
tivation, and  the  rich  harvests  it  yields,  in  compar- 
ison with  the  amount  of  labor  expended.  A  farm 
can  be  opened  on  the  prairie,  and  enough  raised  in 
a  single  summer  to  pay  for  it.  In  the  woodland, 
the  process  is  more  tedious,  and,  at  first,  not  so 
profitable ;  but  it  is  generally  conceded  that,  in  the 
end,  a  farm  in  the  woodland  will  be  more  desirable 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


131 


than  one  on  the  prairie,  as  the  soil  is  thought  to  be 
stronger  and  better  adapted  to  wheat,  fruit,  etc. 
Emigrants  from  timbered  countries  generally  locate 
in  the  woodland,  while  those  from  the  prairie  regions 
of  Illinois,  Iowa,  and  Wisconsin  settle  on  the 
prairies  here. 

The  cost  of  clearing  and  fencing  the  timbered 
land  ranges  from  $18  to  $30  per  acre.  The  cost 
of  breaking  up  the  prairie  is  from  $4.50  to  $7  per 
acre.  The  first  crop  is  put  in  on  the  sod,  and  is 
generally  very  good.  Oats  and  corn  do  very  well 
when  they  are  raised  in  this  way,  as  do  also  pota- 
toes, pumpkins,  melons,  and  all  kinds  of  vegetables. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 


TERRITORIAL   ROADS    THROUGH    MINNESOTA.  RAIL- 
ROADS. THE  LUMBER  BUSINESS. 

Congress  has  made  liberal  appropriations  for 
roads  and  public  improvements  in  the  Territory, 
with  the  aid  of  which,  and  through  the  enterprise 
of  the  people,  there  are  now  good  roads  between 
all  the  important  points  in  the  Territory.  The 
Territorial  road  from  St.  Paul  to  Sioux  City, 
on  the  Missouri,  is  completed  to  Mankato,  and 
passable  its  entire  length.  The  last  session  of 
Congress  appropriated  $50,000  for  a  wagon  road 
from  Fort  Ridgely  to  the  South  Pass  in  the  Rocky 
Mountains.  There  are  already  good  roads  between 
St.  Paul  and  the  Fort. 

Railroads  to  and  through  Minnesota.  —  Inas- 
much as  a  diversity  of  opinion  exists  among  the 
citizens  of  the  several  more  important  towns,  as  to 
which  of  the  numerous  railroad  routes  projected 
thither  is  of  greatest  importance  to  the  Territory, 
the  question  was  submitted  to  Governor  Gorman, 
whose  reply  follows : 

(132) 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


133 


Executive  Office,  Minnesota  Territory,  ) 
St.  Paul,  July  22,  1856.  J 

N.  H.  Parker,  Esq. 

Sir,  —  I  have  received  yours,  desiring  to  have  my  opinion  as  to 
the  importance  of  railroad  routes  in  Minnesota.  In  reply,  I  have 
to  say,  that  every  person  may  have  their  own  views  about  where 
railroads  should  first  be  located ;  but  I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying, 
that  a  road  from  Chicago  through  Wisconsin  to  St.  Paul  would  be 
most  beneficial  to  this  capital  and  its  vicinity,  and  such  a  road  is 
now  proposed.  Chartered  companies  have  been  organized,  and  a 
grant  of  land  made  by  Congress  to  the  State  of  Wisconsin  for  that 
object. 

A  grant  of  land  will  most  probably  be  made  for  a  road  from  Win- 
ona on  the  Mississippi  River  to  St.  Peters  on  the  Minnesota  River, 
and  a  road  from  St.  Paul  to  St.  Peters,  on  the  Minnesota  River ; 
also  one  from  the  Iowa  line  to  St.  Paul,  and  thence  to  Lake  Supe- 
rior. One  of  the  Iowa  roads  is  also  pointing  to  St.  Peters,  which  is 
twelve  miles  below  Mankato  ;  and  St.  Peters  is  perhaps  the  most 
flourishing  point  on  that  river.  Whatever  road  reaches  St.  Peters- 
first  will  command,  for  many  years,  the  trade  of  that  lovely  valley, 
of  the  Minnesota  River,  which  is  the  Nile  of  our  Territory,  unsur- 
passed in  any  part  of  the  Northwest. 

If  Wisconsin  pushes  a  road  there  first,  she  will  command  the 
trade  of  all  southern  Minnesota.  If  Iowa  taps  it  first  by  any  road, 
she  will  command  it ;  and  it  is  not  to  be  disguised  that  this  valley  is 
to  be  the  most  populous  part  of  this  Territory  and  future  State. 

The  capital  of  this  State  will  probably  go  to  St.  Peters,  especially 
as  so  many  railroads  are  pointing  there.  The  grants  of  land  for 
these  roads  will  be  made  by  this  Congress  at  their  present  session. 
The  bill  has  passed  the  committee  on  public  lands,  and  ordered  to 
be  introduced,  as  I  have  before  indicated.  I  trust  this  may  be  use- 
ful to  you,  and  through  you,  to  the  country. 

Respectfully,  W.  A.  Gorman. 

The  Minnesota  Pineries. —  The  Lumbering 
Business.  —  Of  the  area  of  the  pine  region  of 

12 


134 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


Minnesota  there  are  no  reliable  data  accessible ;  but 
that  the  lumbering  business  is  one  of  the  most 
important  and  profitable  to  the  Territory,  none  can 
question  who  will  examine  the  statistics.  An 
estimate  was  made  last  spring,  by  a  gentleman 
well  versed  in  the  affairs  of  the  pineries,  of  the 
number  of  feet  of  logs  that  would  probably  be 
floated  down  from  the  pineries  during  the  last 
spring.  His  estimates  were  :  "  From  Rum  River, 
120,000,000  ;  from  the  Mississippi,  40,000,000  ; 
from  the  St.  Croix,  160,000,000;  from  the  Chip- 
pewa, 75,000,000 ;  total,  395,000,000." 

These  figures  may  look  large  to  one  not  ac- 
quainted with  the  extent  of  the  business ;  but  the 
following,  from  the  Prescott  Transcript,  dated  in 
June,  will  show  the  estimate  to  be  within  bounds. 
Port  Prescott  is  at  the  mouth  of  St.  Croix  Lake, 
a  favorable  stand-point.  It  says :  "  Twenty-six 
rafts  of  logs  have  been  floated  out  of  the  St.  Croix 
within  the  past  week.  These  rafts,  we  are  informed 
by  a  reliable  lumberman,  will  make  from  twelve  to 
fifteen  hundred  thousand  feet  of  lumber  each; 
making  in  all  over  thirty  million  feet,  or  $600,000 
worth.  That  will  do  for  one  week !  The  estimate 
of  one  hundred  and  fifty  million  for  the  St.  Croix, 
this  season,  may  be  safely  multiplied  by  two. 
There  is  more  lumber  floating  this  season  than  in 
any  one  of  the  past  four  years." 

To  this  article  the  St.  Croix  Union,  published  at 
Stillwater,  adds  :  "  We  presume  every  word  of  the 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


135 


above  is  strictly  true.  Rafts  are  leaving  Stillwater 
for  the  southern  market  almost  every  day ;  and,  as 
soon  as  they  leave,  others  float  down  from  the 
boom,  and  take  their  places.  From  $75,000  to 
$125,000  worth  of  logs  may  be  seen,  any  day,  in 
the  lake  opposite  Stillwater;  and  this  has  been  true 
for  the  four  or  five  weeks  just  past.  The  amount 
of  capital  invested  here  in  the  lumber  business 
amounts  to  nearly  two  millions  of  dollars. 

From  an  article  on  Stillwater,  by  the  editor  of 
the  Minnesotian,  I  extract  the  following : 

"  Stillwater,  it  is  well  known,  is  the  head-quar- 
ters of  the  lumber  trade  of  the  St.  Croix ;  and,  as 
that  trade  has  extended  this  year  to  more  than 
twice  its  former  figure,  of  course  Stillwater  mate- 
rially prospers  accordingly.  Since  the  opening  of 
navigation,  pine  logs  and  lumber  have  been  meas- 
ured by  the  acre  at  the  bend  of  Lake  St.  Croix 
and  on  the  river  above.  Three  or  four  thousand 
men  have  found  constant  employment  in  getting 
the  logs  ready  for  market,  and  transporting  them 
thereto.  The  great  bulk  of  the  trade  is  over  for 
the  season,  yet  logs  and  rafts  still  line  the  shore  of 
the  lake,  and  cover  its  surface  from  its  head  to  a 
considerable  distance  below  Hudson.  The  amount 
of  lumber  produced  on  the  St.  Croix,  which  has 
been  and  will  be  sent  out  this  season,  is  over  two 
hundred  million  feet.  Logs  still  bring  a  very  high 
price  below ;  and  of  course  this  business  is  bound 
to  go  on  increasing  from  year  to  year. 


136 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


"  Lumber  Manufacturing  at  Stillwater.  — 
Stillwater  has  now  four  extensive  saw-mills — the 
old  McKusick  mills,  driven  by  water  power ;  and 
Sawyer  &  Heaton's,  Hersey,  Staples  &  Co.'s,  and 
Schulenberg's  steam-mills.  The  two  latter  are  con- 
sidered the  best  mills  in  the  Territory — Hersey, 
Staples  &  Co.'s  being  the  most  extensive  of  the 
two.  It  is,  perhaps,  the  finest  working  mill  in  the 
West,  and  is  in  all  departments  as  near  perfection 
as  machinery  can  be  brought  by  human  skill.  It 
works  three  upwright  saws  and  a  gang ;  also,  floor- 
ing and  siding  circular  saws,  and  lath  machines. 
The  flooring  saws  are  rigged  to  cut  both  ways,  thus 
saving  half  the  time  usually  consumed  in  operat- 
ing machines  of  this  kind.  Everything  about  the 
mill  is  done  by  machinery,  even  to  the  filing  of 
saws,  the  handling  and  shifting  of  lumber,  and  the 
removal  of  slabs.  Mr.  Staples'  lumber  is  exten- 
sively used  in  St.  Paul,  and  is  pronounced  by  our 
builders  to  be  much  the  best  in  use  here,  both  in 
regard  to  quality  and  manufacture.  The  mill  is 
capable  of  cutting  one  hundred  and  twenty-five 
thousand  feet  in  twenty-four  hours." 

Further  items  respecting  the  lumbering  regions, 
and  of  vacant  lands  therein,  will  be  found  in  chap- 
ter XVIII.  of  this  work. 


CHAPTER  XX. 


SCHOOLS   AND  CHURCHES. 

No  portion  of  the  United  States  has  more  liberal 
appropriations  for  educational  purposes  than  Min- 
nesota. Every  sixteenth  and  thirty-sixth  section 
in  every  township  is  reserved  and  set  apart  for  the 
support  of  common  schools.  This  land  is  not 
available  for  the  support  of  schools  until  Minnesota 
shall  become  a  State,  which  will  probably  be  dur- 
ing the  next  session  of  Congress ;  as  it  is  certain 
she  has  now  within  her  Territory  more  than 
enough  inhabitants  to  entitle  her  to  be  admitted. 
In  travelling  over  the  Territory,  I  found  schools 
in  almost  every  town  and  village.  There  is  a 
scarcity  of  female  teachers ;  as  men  can  make  from 
two  to  three  dollars  per  day  at  out-door  employ- 
ments, which,  in  this  healthy  latitude,  they  much 
prefer,  this  branch  will  be  left  almost  entirely  to 
females. 

The  Hamlin  University,  at  Red  Wing,  is  a 
chartered  institution,  with  donations  sufficient  to 
erect  a  commodious  college  edifice.  The  prepara- 
tory department  has  an  attendance  of  some  seventy 
scholars,  and  is  ably  conducted. 

12*  *  137) 


138 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


The  University  of  Minnesota  was  incorporated 
by  Congress  in  1851,  and  located  at  St.  Anthony. 
The  incorporation  act  provides  that  "  the  proceeds 
of  all  lands  that  may  hereafter  be  granted  by  the 
United  States  to  the  Territory,  for  the  support  of  a 
university,  shall  be  and  remain  a  perpetual  fund, 
to  be  called  'the  university  fund,'  the  interest  of 
which  shall  be  appropriated  to  the  support  of  a 
university."  From  the  proceedings  of  a  meeting 
of  the  regents,  held  on  the  26th  May,  I  notice  that 
propertywhich  cost  the  university  $5,500  is  now 
worth  $20,000.  In  addition  to  this,  the  university 
owns  forty-three  thousand  acres  of  land,  which,  at 
the  moderate  estimate  of  $10  an  acre,  would  be 
worth  $430,000.  This  property,  with  careful 
management,  will  in  a  few  years  be  worth  over  a 
million  of  dollars;  which  leaves  no  room  for  a 
doubt  that  the  University  of  Minnesota  will  be  one 
of  the  most  wealthy  institutions  in  the  United 
States. 

It  is  to  be  hoped  that  the  regents  will  keep  a 
good  look-out  for  the  interests  of  the  university,  and 
that  its  officers  may  prove  more  faithful  and  trusty 
than  one  who  made  a  $200,000  mistake  in  his  own 
favor  in  an  adjoining  State. 

A  university  is  about  being  organized  on  the 
Minnesota  River;  but  at  what  point,  I  did  not 
learn.  All  the  larger  towns  and  cities  in  the  Ter- 
ritory are  erecting  large  and  substantial  district 
school-houses. 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


139 


Of  churches,  it  need  only  be  stated  that  nearly 
all  the  Orthodox  denominations  have  regularly  or- 
ganized societies  in  the  larger  places,  and  that,  in 
smaller  towns  and  neighborhoods,  the  denomina- 
tion which  predominates  leads  in  the  organization 
of  a  church.  There  seems  to  be  much  unity  and 
harmony  among  the  different  churches.  The 
primary  convention  of  the  Protestant  Episcopal 
Church  met  in  St.  Paul,  on  the  1st  of  May,  when 
a  permanent  organization  was  effected,  and  "  the 
diocese  of  Minnesota,"  created. 

The  fifth  annual  meeting  of  the  Minnesota 
Bible  Society  was  held  in  St.  Paul,  on  the  27th  of 
April.  There  are  in  the  Territory  sixteen  county 
societies,  all  auxiliary  to  the  parent  society.  The 
total  distribution  of  books  during  the  year  amounted 
to  $646.  Each  of  the  hotels,  as  also  the  boats 
plying  the  northern  waters,  have  been  supplied  by 
this  society  with  the  Bible.  Who  can  estimate 
the  benefits  upon  the  community,  and  upon  in- 
dividuals, conferred  by  the  labors  of  this  associa- 
tion? 


CHAPTER  XXI. 


THE  INDIAN  TRIBES  OF  THE  NORTHWEST.  FEDERAL, 

LAND,    TERRITORIAL,   AND    DISTRICT  OFFICERS.  

INDIAN  AGENTS.  NEWSPAPERS.  TABLE  OF  DIS- 
TANCES. 

The  author  collected  numerous  matters  of  inter- 
est respecting  the  Indians  of  the  northwest.  Find- 
ing the  particulars  too  extensive  for  this  volume, 
he  will  merely  mention  the  names  of  the  principal 
tribes  in  the  Territory.  A  volume  is  in  course  of 
preparation,  giving  a  full  account  of  the  condition 
of  the  Indians,  their  costumes,  habits,  and  dialeqts, 
their  legends  and  mythologies. 

The  Indians  that  formerly  occupied  Illinois,  Wis- 
consin, and  Iowa,  have  been  removed  to  Minnesota, 
and  there  are  now  in  the  Territory  about  forty 
thousand,  who  may  be  thus  classified : 

Medawakantwan  ( Sioux)  or  Dacotah.  —  Red 
Wing  band,  300 ;  Kaposia  band,  400 ;  Black-dog 
band,  300 ;  Lake  Calhoun  band,  250 ;  Good-road's 
band,  300 ;  Little  Six's  band,  400. 

Wahpetonwans  (Sioux).  —  Little  Rapids  band, 
150;  Lac-Qui-Parle  band,  400;  Big  Stone  Lake 
band,  150. 

(140) 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


141 


Sissitons.  —  Traverse  des  Sioux  band,  350 ;  Lit- 
tle-rock band,  300 ;  Lao  Traverse  band,  350 ;  be- 
sides these,  there  are  some  400  more,  unorganized. 

The  Wahpekootays  number  perhaps  300. 

Yauktons. —  The  Cut-Heads  number  about  100 ; 
the  Who-do-not-eat-buffalo-cows  band,  100 ;  Peo- 
ple-of-the-poles  band,  100. 

Tetons.  —  The  Ogolawla  band,  300 ;  the  Sioune 
band,  150. 

The  Chippeway  or  Ojibway  nation  are  the  most 
intelligent  and  the  most  chivalric.  We  have  more 
full  accounts  of  the  dialects,  legends,  mythological 
history,  etc.,  of  this  tribe  than  of  any  other  in  the 
country.    They  number  about  8000. 

The  first  Indian  reservation  reached  by  the  trav- 
eller is  that  of  the  Winnebagoes,  on  the  Blue 
Earth  River,  consisting  of  two  hundred  and  seven 
thousand  three  hundred  and  sixty  acres,  or  eighteen 
miles  square,  of  land.  This  reserve  is  under  the 
control  of  Colonel  J.  E.  Fletcher,  agent  of  the 
Winnebagoes,  of  whom  there  are  about  2000. 
From  Colonel  F.,  I  gathered  the  following  statis- 
tics, which  will  convey  some  idea  of  the  provisions 
made  for  the  Indians.  The  Sissitons,  and  some 
other  tribes,  however,  report  themselves  as  suffering 
for  want  of  food  and  raiment.  The  appropriations 
to  the  Winnebagoes  are :  money,  $48,000  ;  goods, 
$20,000;  provisions,  $10,000;  salt,  barrels,  50; 
tobacco,  pounds,  45,000 ;  education,  $6,300  ;  agri- 
culture, $3,365;  general  improvement,  $4,250 


142 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


medicine  and  attendance,  $1000 ;  salary  of  miller, 
$600.  Three  blacksmith's  shops  are  also  supported 
for  their  benefit.  By  the  treaty  of  1846,  $10,000 
was  appropriated  for  the  establishment  of  manual 
labor  schools,  which  object  has  never  yet  been 
effected. 

Persons  wishing  to  visit  this  reserve  will  stop  at 
Mankato,  where  they  will  be  correctly  directed  to 
the  Agency,  twelve  miles  distant. 

FEDERAL  OFFICERS   LOCATED  IN  MINNESOTA. 

Willis  A.  Gorman,  Governor,  St.  Paul. 

J.  Travis  Rosser,  Secretary,  " 

W.  H.  Welch,  Chief  Justice,  Red  Wing. 

A.  G.  Chatfield,  Associate  Justice,  Belle  Plain 

Moses  Sherburne,      "         "      St.  Paul. 

M.  W.  Irwin,  Marshal,  St.  Paul. 

Norman  Eddy^  District  Attorney,  St.  Paul. 

LAND  OFFICERS. 

T.  M.  Fullerton,  Register,  Stillwater. 

Wm.  Holcombe,  Receiver,  " 

G.  W.  Sweet,  Register,  Sauk  Rapids. 

W.  H.  Wood,  Receiver,  " 

M.  L.  Olds,  Register,  Minnneapolis. 

R.  P.  Russell,  Receiver,  " 

W.  W.  Phelps,  Register,  Red  Wing. 

C.  Graham,  Receiver,  u 

D.  Upham,  Register,  Winona, 
L.  D.  Smith,  Receiver,  " 

Major  Bennett,  Register,  Brownsville. 
J.  H.  McKinnet,  Receiver,  " 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


143 


INDIAN  AGENTS. 

J.  E.  Fletcher,  Winnebago  Agency. 
J.  B.  Herriman,  Chippeway  " 
R.  G.  Murphy,  Sioux  " 

TERRITORIAL  OFFICERS. 

H.  M.  Rice,  Delegate  in  Congress,  Washington,  D.  C. 
J.  R.  Brown,  Territorial  Printer,  Henderson. 
L.  Emmett,  Attorney  General,  St.  Paul. 

C.  E.  Leonard,  Treasurer,  St.  Anthony, 
Julius  Geoegh,  Auditor,  St.  Paul. 

Wm.  Sprigg  Hall,  Superintendent  of  Common  Schools,  St.  Paul. 

DISTRICT  OFFICERS* 

Robert  Hastie,  Surveyor  of  Lumber,  Stillwater* 

D.  Stanchfield,      "  "       St.  Anthony. 
W.  Lauver,             "             "       Red  Wing. 

NEWSPAPERS  IN  MINNESOTA* 
Name. 

l?ioneer  and  Democrat, 
St.  Paul  Daily  Times, 
St.  Paul  Daily  Free  Press, 
The  Daily  Minnesotian, 
St.  Paul  Advertiser, 
St.  Croix  Union, 
St.  Anthony  Express, 
St.  Anthony  Republican, 
North- Western  Democrat, 
Sauk  Rapids  Frontierman, 
St.  Peter  Weekly  Courier, 
Shakopee  Independent, 
Red  Wing  Sentinel, 
Winona  Republican, 
Winona  Argus, 
Brownsville  Herald, 


Location, 
Daily,  St.  Paul. 


Monthly, 
Weekly,  Stillwater. 


St.  Anthony. 


Sauk  Rapids 
St.  Peter. 
Shakopee. 
Red  Wing. 
Winona. 

Brownsville. 


144 


MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


Chatfield  Democrat, 
Preston  Journal, 
Stillwater  Republican, 
St.  Cloud  Democrat, 
Henderson  Democrat, 
Minnesota  Gazette, 
Dacotah  Journal, 
Wabashaw  Journal, 


Weekly, 


Chatfield. 
Preston. 
Stillwater. 
St.  Cloud. 
Henderson. 
Red  Wing. 
Hastings. 
Wabashaw. 


[Note. — The  author  returns  thanks  to  the  Press  generally,  for  numerous 
favors.  If  they  will  forward  copies  of  their  papers  containing  important  territo- 
rial or  local  information,  to  him,  at  Clinton,  Iowa,  he  will  be  enabled  to  post  up 
more  fully  on  their  several  localities,  in  future  editions.] 


TABLE  OF  DISTANCES. 


RIVER  DISTANCES. 

Mississippi  River. 


From  St.  Louis  to  Rock  Island. 

Miles. 

Alton, 

.  22 

Grafton, 

18 

Milan, 

.  24 

Wiota, 

42 

Worthington,  . 

.  52 

Westport, 

57 

Hamburg, 

.  62 

Clarksville,  . 

80 

Louisiana, 

.  82 

Scott's  Landing,  . 

97 

Cincinnati, 

.  105 

Saverton, 

115 

Hannibal, 

.  123 

Marion  City, 

133 

Quincy,  . 

.  143 

La  Grange,  . 

155 

Smoot's  Landing, 

.  159 

Canton, 

161 

Tully,      .      .  . 

.  163 

Gregory's  Landing,      .  175 

Alexandria,     .       .  .185 

Keokuk,      ...  190 

Nashville,       .      .  .198 

Montrose,  .  .  .  202 
Nauvoo,  ....  204 

Fort  Madison,     .       .  214 

Pontoosuc,       .       .  .  220 

Burlington,  .       .       .  235 

Oquawka,        .       .  .  250 

Keithsburg,  .       .       .  262 

New  Boston,    .      .  .  269 

Muscatine,    .       .       .  299 

Drury,     .      .       .  .304 

Salem,         .       .       .  309 

Buffalo  and  Andalusia,  .  321 
Rock  Island  and  Davenport,  334 

Eock  Island  to  Galena. 

From  Rock  Island  to  Miles. 

Moline,       .      .  .3 
Hampton,      .       .       9  12 


MINNESOTA 


From  Rock  Island  to 

Miles. 

Le  Claire  and  Pt.  Byron,  6 

18 

Princeton,  . 

.  5 

23 

Cordovia, 

1 

24 

Camancn  e, 

.  10 

34 

Albany, 

o 

.  L 

36 

Clinton,  . 

7 

x  U1LU11,            .  . 

1 

JL 

A  A 

44 

Lyons, 

1 

1 

4x 

S\f>  nnl  o 

OclUuitt,            *  • 

1  5 

o  lO 

OU 

OclVdilllcl,  • 

o 

& 

62 

Bellevue,    .  . 

1  Q 

80 

Galena,  . 

1  0 

Galena  to  St. 

Paul. 

From  Galena  to 

Dubuque, 

24 

Dunleith,  . 

1 

25 

Potosi  Landing, 

14 

39 

Waupaton, . 

.  10 

49 

Buena  Vista,  . 

5 

54 

Cassville,  . 

.  4 

58 

Gutenberg, 

10 

68 

Clayton, 

Wyalusing, 

McGregor's, 

.  12 

80 

5 

85 

.  6 

91 

Prairie  du  Chien, 

4 

95 

Red  House, 

.  5 

100 

Johnson's  Landing, 

2 

102 

Lafayette, 

.  30 

132 

Columbus, 

2 

134 

Lansing, 

.  1 

135 

De  Soto, 

6 

141 

Victory, 

.  10 

151 

Badaxe  City,  . 
W arner's  Landing, 

10 

161 

6 

167 

Brownsville,  . 

177 

La  Crosse, 

.  12 

Dacotah, 

12 

201 

Richmond, 

.  6 

207 

Monteville, 

5 

212 

Homer, 

.  10 

222 

Winona, 

7 

229 

Fountain  City,  . 

.  12 

241 

Mount  Vernon, 

14 

255 

13 


HANDBOOK.  145 

From  Galena  to  Miles. 

Minneiska,         .  .    4  259 

Alma,     .       .  .     15  274 

Wabashaw,        .  .  10  284 

Nelson's  Landing,  .       3  287 

Reed's  Landing,  .    2  289 

Foot  of  Lake  Pepin,  2  291 

North  Pepin,     .  .    6  297 

Johnstown,     .  .       2  299 

Lake  City,        .  .    5  304 

Central  Point,  .       2  306 

Florence,    .       .  .    3  309 

Maiden  Rock,  .       3  312 

Westerville,  .  .  3  315 
Wacouta(headof  lake),  12  327 

Red  Wing,        .  .    6  333 

Thing's  Landing,  .       7  340 

Diamond  Bluff,   .  .    8  348 

Prescott,         .  .      13  361 

Point  Douglas,   .  .    1  362 

Hastings,        .  .       3  365 

Gray  Cloud,       .  .  12  377 

Pine  Bend,     .  .       4  381 

Red  Rock,  .       .  .    8  389 

Kaposia,        .  .       3  392 

St.  Paul,     .       .  .    5  397 


Prescott  to  the  Falls  of 
St.  Croix. 

From  Falls  St.  Croix  to 

Afton,    ...  14 

Hudson,     .       .  .    8  22 

Stillwater.      .  .       8  30 

Areola  Mills,     .  .    8  38 

Marine,  .       .  .       5  43 

Osceola,    .        .  .  20  63 

Falls  St.  Croix,  .      14  77 

St.  Paul  to  Yellow  Medi- 
cine. 

From  St.  Paul  to  By  River. 

Mendota,        .  6 

Fort  Snelling,     .  1  7 

Oak  Grove,     .  10  17 

Credit  River,      .  4  21 


146  MINNESOTA  HANDBOOK. 


Miles. 


By 

By 

From  St.  Paul  to 

River.  Land. 

Bloomington,  . 

7 

28 

Hennepin,  . 

5 

33 

Shakopee,  • 
Yorkville,    .  • 

8 

41 

254 

2 

43 

Chaska, 

3 

46 

Carver,       .  • 

3 

49 

Louisville, 

1 

50 

-Liiitie  Jtvapicis,  • 
San  Francisco, 

4 

54 

54 

Sand  Prairie, 

5 

59 

Bristol  Landing, 

8 

67 

Belle  Plain,    >  . 

5 

72  45 

Roberts'  Landing, 

3 

75 

Swan  Landing,  . 
Russell's  Landing, 

3 

78 

2 

80 

Walker's  Landing, 

2 

82 

Albright's  Landing,  1 
Bonohan's  Landing,  4 

83 

87 

Henderson,  . 

14 

99 

55 

Le  Sueur,  . 

12 

111 

Traverse, 

18 

129 

68 

St.  Peter,  . 

5 

134 

69 

Kasota,  . 

4 

138 

Mankato,  . 

30 

169 

76 

South  Bend,  . 

7 

176 

80 

Eureka, 

28 

204 

Cottonwood  River,  50 

254 

New  Ulm,  . 

22 

276 

Little  Rock,  . 

40 

316 

Fort  Ridgley,  . 

20 

336 

Redivood, 

30 

366 

Yellow  Medicine, 

80 

446 

St.  Paul  to  Lake  Superior. 

From  St.  Paul  to 

St.  Anthony,  . 

•  9 

Rice  Creek,  . 

7 

16 

St.  Francis  or  Rum  Riv.,  9 

25 

Itasca, 

7 

32 

Elk  River, 

6 

38 

Big  Lake, 

10 

48 

Big  Meadow  (Sturgis),  18 

66 

From  St.  Paul  to 

Miles. 

Benton   City  (Sauk 

Rapids), 

10  76 

Watab, 

6  82 

•Little  Rock, 

2  84 

Platte  River, . 

12  96 

Swan  River, 

10  106 

Little  Falls,  . 

3  109 

Belle  Prairie,  . 

5  114 

Fort  Ripley, 

Crow  Wing  River,  . 

10  124 

6  130 

Odlltiy  JUclKc,  •  • 

Savanah  Portage, 

15  265 

Across  the  Portage, 

5  270 

Down  Savanah  River 

to  St.  Louis  River, 

20  290 

Fon  du  Lac, 

60  350 

Lake  Superior, 

22  372 

St.  Paul  to  Fon  du  Lac. 

From  St.  Paul  to 

Stillwater, 

18 

Areola, 

5  23 

Marine  Mills,  . 

6  29 

Falls  St.  Croix,  . 

19  48 

Pdrkagema, 

40  88 

Fon  du  Lac,  . 

75  164 

St.  Paul  to  Pembina. 

From  St.  Paul  to 

Crow  Wing  River, 

130 

Otter  Tail  Lake, 

70  200 

Rice  River,  . 

74  274 

Sand  Hills  River, 

70  340 

Grand  Fork,  Red  River,  40  380 

Pembina, 

80  460 

Via  the  Lakes. 

Sandy  Lake, 

250 

Leech  Lake, 

150  400 

Red  Lake,  . 

80  480 

Pembina, 

150  630 

From  St.  Paul, 

East. 

From  St.  Paul  to 

Stillwater,  . 

18 

MINNESOTA 


From  St.  Paul  to 

Miles. 

Hudson,        .  • 

29 

New  York, 

1700 

Washington  City,  . 

1924 

Shakopee  to  Sioux 

Agency. 

From  Shakopee  to 

Henderson, 

29 

74 

Fort  Ridgley, 

45 

74 

Sioux  Agency, 

12 

86 

To  Glencoe. 

Chaska,  . 

3d 

Carver  City, 

2£ 

6 

San  Francisco, 

4 

10 

Glencoe, 

25 

35 

To  Greenwood. 

Lake  Minnewashta, 

64 

Minnetouka  Narrows, 

3i 

10 

HANDBOOK.  147 

Tazaska,  .  .  1  11 
Pioneer  creek,  .6  17 
Greenwood,        .       6  23 

Minnetouka  City. 
Chanhassen  P.  O.    .  5 
Excelsior,  3  8 

St.  Albans,  .    1  9 

Minnetouka  city,         6  15 

To  Cedar  Lake. 
Spring  Lake,       .       6 J 
Cedar  Lake,    .       .    7  J  14 

To  Faribault. 
Credit  River,       .  9 
Lakeville,       .       .    10  19 
Faribault,  .       22  41 


APPENDIX, 


SIXTH  SESSION  OF  THE  MINNESOTA  LEGISLATURE. 

The  sixth  session  of  the  Minnesota  Legislature  com- 
menced on  Wednesday,  January  3d,  1855,  at  the  capitol, 
in  St.  Paul.  The  following  is  a  list  of  the  members,  their 
places  of  residence  and  occupations : 


COUNCILLORS. 


Name.                 No.  District. 

Residence. 

Occupation. 

J.  E.  Mower, 

1 

Areola. 

Mill  Owner. 

Albert  Stimson, 

1 

Stillwater. 

Lumberman. 

Isaac  Van  Etten, 

2 

St.  Paul. 

lawyer. 

Wm.  P.  Murray, 

2 

St.  Paul. 

Lawyer. 

C.  T.  Stearns, 

3 

St.  Anthony. 

Cabinet  Maker. 

Wm.  Freeborn, 

4 

Red  Wing. 

Merchant, 

S.  B.  Olmstead, 

5 

Fort  Ripley.  Farmer. 

J.  R.  Brown, 

6 

Henderson. 

Merchant. 

N.  W.  Kittson, 

7 

Pembina. 

Indian  Trader. 

REPRESENTATIVES. 

Names. 

No.  District. 

Residence. 

Occupation. 

F.  Andros, 

5 

Long  Prairie.  Physician. 

James  Bealty, 

5 

Itasca. 

Farmer. 

D.  F.  Brawley, 

2 

St.  Paul. 

Brick  Maker. 

C.  S.  Cave, 

2 

St.  Paul. 

Grocer. 

Wm.  Davis, 

2 

St.  Paul. 

S.  B.  Engineer. 

(148) 


APPENDIX. 


149 


J.  B.  Dixon, 

1 

A.  M.  Fridley, 

3 

Chas.  Grant, 

7 

Reuben  Haus, 

2 

D.  M.  Hanson, 

6 

Joseph  Le  May, 

2 

J.  S.  Norris, 

1 

S.  B.  Regester, 

1 

Joseph  Rolette, 

7 

H.  H.  Sibley, 

6 

D.  Stanehfield, 

3 

Wm.  Thompson, 

4 

Wm.  Willim, 

1 

Stillwater.  Printer. 
St.  Anthony.  Sheriff. 
Pembina.      Indian  Trader. 
St.  Paul.  Carpenter. 
Minneapolis.  Lawyer. 
St.  Paul.      Justice  Peace. 
Cottage  Grove.  Farmer. 
Taylor's  Falls.  Lumberman. 
Pembina.       Indian  Trader. 
Mendota.       Indian  Trader. 
St.  Anthony.  Lumberman. 
Brownsville.  Mill  Owner. 
Stillwater.  Plasterer. 


The  Council  was  permanently  organized  by  the  selec- 
tion of  Hon.  S.  B.  Olmstead,  of  Benton  county,  as 
President  (who  resigned  his  seat  at  the  end  of  the  ses- 
sion, and  Hon.  W.  P.  Murray  was  elected  in  his  place), 
and  A.  J.  Morgan,  Esq.,  of  St.  Paul,  -Secretary. 

The  House  chose  James  S.  Norris,  of  Cottage  Grove, 
Washington  county,  Speaker ;  and  for  Clerk,  elected  J.  C. 
Siiepley,  of  St.  Anthony. 

The  Legislature  remained  in  session  sixty  days,  adjourn- 
ing on  the  4th  of  March.  The  following  is  a  list  of 
the  acts,  joint  resolutions,  and  memorials  passed  during 
the  session. 

GENERAL   LAWS   AND   CHARTERS,  OTHER  THAN  FERRY. 

A  bill  to  define  the  boundaries  of  certain  counties. 
An  act  to  change  the  name  of  Ann  Elizabeth  White 
to  Ann  Elizabeth  Tinker. 

A  bill  to  provide  for  laying  out  certain  Territorial  roads. 
13* 


150 


APPENDIX. 


An  act  legalizing  the  town  of  Winona,  and  for  other 
purposes. 

[A  mechanic  lien  law  was  added  to  this  bill — it  allows 
mechanics  a  lien  for  theii  services  on  houses  and  other 
property.] 

A  bill  to  change  the  time  of  holding  courts  in  Ramsey 
county. 

An  act  for  the  benefit  of  common  schools  of  the  Terri- 
tory, and  for  other  purposes. 

[This  bill  is  to  protect  lumber  in  booms,  and  provides 
penalties  in  fines,  for  violations  of  the  law,  which  go  to 
the  benefit  of  the  common  schools  of  the  Territory.] 

An  act  to  provide  for  the  appointment  of  a  commis- 
sioner of  emigration  for  the  Territory  of  Minnesota. 

An  act  to  locate  a  Territorial  road  from  St.  Augusta, 
on  the  Mississippi  river,  to  Lac  Traverse. 

A  bill  for  a  line  of  telegraph  from  St.  Paul  to  St.  An- 
thony and  Minneapolis. 

A  bill  for  an  act  allowing  a  change  of  venue  in  certain 
cases,  and  for  other  purposes. 

[This  act  also  amended  the  revised  statutes,  giving  the 
courts  greater  powers  than  they  now  exercise  in  divorce 
cases.] 

An  act  to  incorporate  the  German  Reading  Society  of 
St.  Cloud. 

A  bill  to  incorporate  the  Boston  and  Minnesota  Mining 
Company. 

An  act  to  incorporate  the  St.  Joseph's  Hospital. 
A  bill  to  provide  for  the  improvement  of  the  Minnesota 
river. 

An  act  to  incorporate  the  Lake  Pepin  Boom  Company. 


APPENDIX. 


151 


A  bill  for  an  act  to  incorporate  the  Monticello  Academy 
at  Monticello. 

An  act  to  incorporate  the  Territorial  Emigration  So- 
ciety. 

An  act  to  incorporate  the  Minnesota  Typographical 
Union. 

An  act  to  incorporate  the  Sisters  of  Propagation  of 
Faith  Society,  of  St.  Joseph,  at  Pembina. 

An  act  to  authorize  the  construction  of  a  dam  across 
Crow  river. 

An  act  to  incorporate  the  Pioneer  Hook  and  Ladder 
Company  of  St.  Paul. 

An  act  relative  to  the  county-seat  of  Houston  county. 

A  bill  to  amend  an  act,  entitled  an  act  to  incorporate 
the  Minnesota  "Western  Railroad  Company. 

A  bill  to  confirm  the  qualifications  of  certain  county 
officers  in  Sibley  county. 

An  act  prescribing  rules  and  regulations  for  the  execu- 
tion of  the  trusts  arising  under  the  act  of  Congress,  entitled, 
"  An  act  for  the  relief  of  citizens  of  towns  upon  lands  of 
the  United  States,  under  certain  circumstances." 

A  bill  to  incorporate  the  Transit  Railroad  Company. 

An  act  to  incorporate  the  Pittsburg  and  Minnesota 
Mining  Company,  and  for  other  purposes. 

[This  act  located  the  county-seat  of  Carver  county  at 
San  Francisco.] 

A  bill  to  locate  the  county-seat  of  Le  Sueur  county. 

An  act  to  restore  to  Ephraim  H.  Whittaker,  his  civil 
rights  as  a  citizen  of  the  United  States. 

An  act  to  provide  for  laying  out  certain  Territorial 
Roads  in  Minnesota  Territory. 


152 


APPENDIX. 


A  bill  to  provide  for  laying  out  a  Territorial  road  from 
St.  Paul  to  Elliota. 

An  act  to  incorporate  the  city  of  Stillwater,  in  the 
county  of  "Washington. 

An  act  to  incorporate  the  Root  River  Valley  and  South- 
ern Minnesota  Railroad  Company,  and  for  other  purposes. 

[This  bill  located  the  county-seat  of  Fillmore  county 
at  Carimona,  and  of  Wright  county  at  Monticello.] 

An  act  to  amend  an  act  entitled,  "  An  act  to  incorpo- 
rate the  St.  Croix  Boom  Company." 

An  act  to  incorporate  the  town  of  Henderson,  and  for 
other  purposes. 

An  act  to  incorporate  the  city  of  St.  Anthony. 

An  act  to  amend  an  act  entitled,  "  An  act  to  incorpo- 
rate the  St.  Anthony  Boom  Company,"  approved  March 
27th,  1852. 

A  bill  to  provide  for  the  apportionment  of  members  of 
the  Legislative  Assembly  of  the  Territory  of  Minnesota. 

A  bill  to  amend  an  act  entitled,  "  An  act  relating  to 
auctioneers." 

An  act  to  organize  the  county  of  Stearns,  and  for  other 
purposes. 

[This  bill  also  located  the  county-seat  of  Stearns  county 
at  St.  Cloud;  and  provided  for  the  removal  of  county 
officers  in  case  they  should  refuse  to  keep  their  offices  at 
the  county-seat  of  their  respective  counties.] 

A  bill  to  amend  an  act  entitled,  "  An  act  to  incorporate 
the  Minnesota  Western  Railroad  Company." 

An  act  supplementary  to  an  act  entitled,  "  An  act  to 
amend  the  Minnesota  Western  Railroad  Company." 

An  act  providing  that  copies  of  the  records  in  the  office 
of  Register  of  Deeds  may  be  admissible  in  evidence. 


APPENDIX. 


153 


A  bill  for  an  act  to  locate  a  Territorial  road  from  St. 
Cloud  to  intersect  the  old  Red  river  road  of  the  North. 

An  act  entitled,  an  act  to  incorporate  the  city  of  St. 
Paul,  Ramsey  county. 

An  act  to  provide  for  taking  a  census  of  the  population 
of  this  Territory. 

An  act  to  abolish  imprisonment  for  debt  and  for  other 
purposes. 

An  act  to  provide  for  the  election  of  Supervisors  of 
Roads,  and  for  other  purposes. 

An  act  to  defray  the  expenses  of  the  Legislative  As- 
sembly of  Minnesota  Territory. 

FERRY  CHARTERS. 

An  act  to  amend  an  act  granting  to  James  M.  Goodhue 
and  Isaac  N.  Goodhue  the  right  to  establish  and  maintain 
a  ferry  across  the  Mississippi  river. 

An  act  granting  to  Samuel  H.  McManus,  Win.  Creigh- 
ton,  and  James  C.  Beekinan,  the  right  to  establish  and 
maintain  a  ferry  across  the  Mississippi  river. 

A  bill  to  amend  an  act  granting  to  Daniel  F.  Brawley 
the  right  to  establish  and  maintain  a  ferry  across  the  Mis- 
sissippi river. 

A  bill  granting  to  William  L.  Ames,  George  Hezlep, 
George  W.  Farrington,  C.  H.  Parker,  and  William  B. 
Dodd,  the  right  to  establish  and  maintain  a  ferry  across 
the  Minnesota  fiver. 

An  act  granting  to  O.  H.  Kelley  the  right  to  establish 
and  maintain  a  ferry  across  the  Mississippi  river. 

A  bill  granting  to  Moses  Perrin  and  Joseph  H.  Taylor 
the  right  to  establish  and  maintain  a  ferry  across  Lake  St. 
Croix. 


154 


APPENDIX. 


An  act  granting  to  George  E.  Stuntz  the  right  to  es- 
tablish and  maintain  a  ferry  across  the  St.  Louis  river. 

An  act  granting  to  Wm.  H.  Oliver  the  right  to  estab- 
lish and  maintain  a  ferry  across  Lake  St.  Croix. 

An  act  granting  to  Ira  Myrick  the  right  to  establish  and 
maintain  a  ferry  across  the  Minnesota  river,  at  Le  Sueur 
city. 

An  act  granting  to  John  Hamilton  the  right  to  establish 
and  maintain  a  ferry  across  the  St.  Croix  river. 

An  act  granting  to  Lewis  Stone,  A.  C.  Biggs,  George 
Houghton,  and  H.  N.  Corbett,  the  right  to  establish  and 
maintain  a  ferry  across  the  Mississippi  river. 

An  act  granting  to  Wm.  Foster  the  right  to  establish 
and  maintain  a  ferry  across  the  Minnesota  river,  at  San 
Francisco,  in  Carver  county. 

An  act  granting  to  Orrin  TV*.  Rice  the  right  to  estab- 
lish and  maintain  a  ferry  across  the  head  of  the  Bay  of 
Superior. 

An  act  to  incorporate  the  Winona  Ferry  Company. 

An  act  granting  to  John  L.  Wilson,  Anton  Edelbrock, 
and  Wm.  A.  Corbett,  the  right  to  establish  and  maintain 
a  ferry  across  the  Mississippi  river,  at  St.  Cloud,  and  for 
other  purposes. 

[The  "other  purposes"  granted  to  Antoine  Roberts  a 
ferry  charter  across  the  Minnesota  river,  in  Le  Sueur 
county.] 

An  act  granting  to  W.  W.  Sweeney,  William  Louver, 
Richard  Freeborn,  and  Norris  Hobart,  the  right  to  estab- 
lish and  maintain  a  ferry  across  the  Mississippi  river. 

An  act  granting  to  Carmi  P.  Garlick  the  right  to  estab- 
lish and  maintain  a  ferry  across  the  St.  Croix  river. 


APPENDIX. 


155 


An  act  granting  to  0.  W.  Streeter  the  right  to  establish 
and  maintain  a  ferry  across  the  Mississippi  river. 

MEMORIALS  TO  CONGRESS. 

For  $10,000  for  the  completion  of  the  Mendota  and 
Wabashaw  road. 

For  $5,000  for  the  construction  of  a  Territorial  road 
from  the  west  bank  of  the  Mississippi  river,  opposite  the 
lower  portion  of  the  city  of  St.  Paul,  to  intersect  the  Ter- 
ritorial road  now  being  constructed  from  Mendota  to  Wa- 
bashaw. 

For  $5,000  to  extend  the  Mendota  and  Big  Sioux 
river  road  from  Mendota  to  the  west  bank  of  the  Missis- 
sippi,  opposite  the  city  of  St.  Paul. 

For  $10,000  for  the  construction  of  a  military  road 
from  Fort  Ripley  to  or  near  the  mouth  of  Pembina  river. 

For  an  appropriation  to  complete  the  government  works 
at  Fort  Ridgley. 

For  an  appropriation  in  Minnesota  Territory,  for  the 
improvement  of  the  navigation  of  the  Mississippi  river. 

For  an  appropriation  for  the  construction  of  a  military 
road  from  Fort  Ridgley,  to  connect  with  the  Mendota  and 
Big  Sioux  road. 

JOINT  RESOLUTIONS. 

A  joint  resolution  relative  to  a  change  in  the  Distribut- 
ing Post-office  from  Dubuque  to  Galena. 

Relative  to  an  error  in  the  charge  of  $33.17  to  the 
county  of  Washington,  by  the  Territorial  treasurer,  in  the 
year  1850. 

Relative  to  the  binding  of  the  journals. 


156 


APPENDIX. 


The  above  list  of  acts  comprises  several  general  laws 
of  great  importance  to  the  people  of  the  Territory — 
among  them  may  be  ranked  the  apportionment  bill,  an  act 
defining  the  boundaries  of  certain  counties,  for  the  abol- 
ishment of  imprisonment  for  debt,  etc. 

The  bill  defining  the  boundaries  of  certain  counties, 
provides  for  the  erection  of  the  following  new  counties : 
Olmstead,  Dodge,  Mower,  Freeborn,  Faribault,  Steele, 
Carver,  Renville,  Davis,  Wright,  Stearns,  Brown,  Newton, 
Todd,  Itasca,  and  Superior. 

The  apportionment  bill  is  a  measure  designed  to  give 
the  people  of  the  Territory,  west  of  the  Mississippi,  a  fair 
representation  in  the  Territorial  Legislature.  By  it,  the 
number  of  members  of  the  House  is  increased  to  thirty- 
eight,  and  of  the  Council  to  fifteen.  A  census  of  the  Ter- 
ritory is  to  be  taken  in  August,  and,  in  the  month  fol- 
lowing, a  committee,  composed  of  members  of  the  two 
branches  of  the  last  Legislature,  will  meet  in  St.  Paul,  and 
determine  the  representation  to  which  each  Council  dis- 
trict is  entitled  in  the  next  Legislature.  This  committee  is 
composed  of  the  following  gentlemen :  Messrs.  J.  B. 
Brown,  Albert  Stimson,  D.  M.  Hanson,  Wm.  A.  Davis, 
and  C.  S.  Cave.  Their  duties  are  important,  and  the  peo- 
ple of  the  Territory  require  at  their  hands  a  faithful,  im- 
partial, and  just  apportionment  of  the  Territory. 

The  Legislature  also  passed  a  bill  granting  an  extension 
of  time  to  the  Minnesota  and  Northwestern  Railroad 
Company.  The  bill  was  vetoed  by  the  Governor,  but  was 
subsequently  passed  over  the  Governor's  veto,  by  a  con- 
stitutional majority. 


APPENDIX. 


157 


POST-OFFICES  IN  MINNESOTA. 


Amoka, 

Marine  Mills, 

Babcock's  Landing, 

Mendota, 

Belle  Plain, 

Milton  Mills, 

Benton, 

Minneapolis, 

Bloomington, 

Minnetonka, 

Brownsville, 

Minnesota  City, 

Cass  Lake, 

Mt.  Yernon, 

Chanhassen, 

Pembina, 

Chatfield, 

Point  Douglas, 

Cottage  Grove, 

Portland, 

Crow  Wing, 

Red  Lake, 

Eagle  Bluff, 

Red  Rock, 

Elk  River, 

Red  Wing, 

Elliota, 

Reed's  Landing, 

Excelsior, 

Sauk  Rapids, 

Faribault, 

Saint  Anthony, 

Fort  Ridgley, 

Saint  Joseph, 

Fort  Ripley, 

Saint  Paul, 

Fort  Snelling, 

Sioux  Agency, 

Hastings, 

Shakopee, 

Henderson, 

Stillwater, 

Itasca, 

Swan  River, 

Kasota, 

Taylor's  Falls, 

Lac  qui  Parle, 

Traverse  des  Sioux. 

Lakeland, 

Wacoota, 

Lakeville, 

Wabashaw, 

Le  Sueur, 

Watab, 

Long  Prairie, 

Waterford, 

Mankato, 

Winona. 

Manomin, 

14 


158 


APPENDIX. 


The  following  post-office  appointments  have  recently 
been  made : 

At  Spring  Grove,  in  Houston  county,  Embrick  Rund- 
son  has  been  appointed  postmaster,  in  place  of  James 
Smith,  resigned. 

At  Maple  Plain,  Hennepin  county,  a  post-office  has 
been  established,  and  Irvin  Shrewsbury  appointed  post- 
master. 

At  Eureka,  Nicollet  county,  a  post-office  has  been  es- 
tablished, and  John  Henderson  appointed  postmaster. 

At  Hamilton,  Houston  county,  a  post-office  has  been  es- 
tablished, and  Charles  Smith  appointed  postmaster. 

At  Wasioja,  Dodge  county,  a  post-office  has  been  estab- 
lished, and  Eli  P.  Waterman  appointed  postmaster. 

At  New  Ulm,  Brown  county,  a  post-office  has  been  es- 
tablished, and  Anton  Kaus  appointed  postmaster. 

The  postmaster  general  has  ordered  that  the  service  on 
route  No.  14,050,  from  Traverse  de  Sioux  to  Eureka,  be 
extended  to  New  Ulm ;  also,  the  establishment  of  a  special 
mail  route  from  St.  Cloud,  via  Hanley,  Mille  Lac,  and 
Twin  Lakes,  to  Superior.  G.  F.  Brott  has  received  the 
contract  for  carrying  the  mails. 

The  following  new  post-offices  have  been  established  in 
this  Territory: 

At  Twin  Lakes,  St.  Louis  county,  G.  W.  Berry,  post- 
master. 

At  Grand  Portage,  Superior  county,  H.  H.  McCul- 
lough,  postmaster. 

At  Centralia,  Dakota  county,  II.  P.  Sweet,  postmaster. 

At  Beaver  Bay,  Superior  county,  R.  McLean,  post- 
master. 
% 


APPENDIX. 


159 


At  Mille  Lac,  Pine  county,  M.  Leadbetter,  postmaster. 
At  French  River,'  Superior  county,  H.  Smith,  post- 
master. 

At  Grand  Marie,  Superior  county,  R.  Godfrey,  post- 
master. 

At  Hanley,  Chisago  county,  John  Hanley,  postmaster. 
At  Neenah,  Stearns  county,  H.  B.  Johnston,  postmas- 
ter. 


IOWA  AND  MINNESOTA  LAND  AGENCY. 


The  author,  since  the  issue  of  his  former  works,  has 
had  hundreds  of  applications  for  information  respecting 
certain  localities  in  the  West :  the  price  of  land  or  of 
town  lots,  good  openings  for  manufactories,  or  mills,  stores, 
or  mechanics,  or  laborers,  extra  speculations,  etc.  Con- 
vinced of  the  need  of  such  an  agency,  he  has  in  his  recent 
tours  so  arranged  with  reliable  persons  in  various  quarters, 
that  he  will  be  enabled  to  give  almost  any  information 
desired  of  the  West  with  promptness.  Letters  of  inquiry 
are  of  importance  to  the  applicant  only,  and  a  correct 
reply  costs  both  time  and  money ;  therefore  those  writing, 
hereafter,  will  inclose  from  $1  to  $5,  according  to  the 
information  desired,  and  the  expense  to  be  incurred. 
Lands  bought  and  sold  in  every  county  in  Iowa  and 
Minnesota;  taxes  paid,  and  a  general  agency  business 
transacted. 

Letters  relative  to  business  in  Minnesota  should  be 
addressed  to  Nathan  H.  Parker,  care  of  Snyder  & 
McFarlane,  Land  Agents,  Minneapolis,  Minnesota ;  those 
relative  to  matters  west  of  the  Des  Moines  River,  to 
Parker  &  Davis,  Sioux  City,  Iowa.  Letters  pertaining  to 
matters  on  and  east  of  the  Des  Moines  River  to  be 
addressed  to 

Nathan  H.  Parker, 

Clinton,  Iowa. 

(148) 


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